March 2016 Blog Posts (16)

“Sticks and stones may break my bones, but words will never hurt me” is an English nursery rhyme dating back to 1862. We all said this when some bully, or some insensitive friend, made remarks to us or about us. Even though we said it, we knew it wasn’t true. Words do hurt, sometimes more than sticks and stones. I was reminded of this not long ago, when a friend made a hurtful remark about me. If the remark had been true it wouldn’t have hurt so bad, but it was false. Perhaps a…

"Having a form of godliness but denying its power." - 2 Timothy 3:5

When I was a kid, Wonder Bread seemed like a major food group. We used it for toast to dip in our egg yolks…sandwiches for our school lunches…and French toast as a treat on the weekends. Wonder Bread was so soft you could squeeze a slice into a tiny ball the size of a nickel.

But what I remember most about Wonder Bread was its marketing blurb: “Builds Strong…

I was recently encouraged by comments from Kyle, whom I'm discipling. While Kyle was in an overseas military location, he met Christian, whom I had spent time with one-on-one several years before meeting Kyle. As they talked, Christian said, "I've followed what Dave suggested and its made a difference in how I've lived for Jesus."
It gives me no greater joy than to know my children are walking with Jesus. (3 John 1:4)

“Thou art the Sun of other days, They shine by giving back thy rays.”   (John Keble: The Christian Year)

“’Dear woman, why are you crying?’ Jesus asked her. ‘Who are you looking for?’ ‘Mary!’ Jesus said. She turned to him and cried out, ‘Rabboni!’ (which is Hebrew for ‘Teacher’). Mary Magdalene found the…

One of the Bible’s most incredible statements is that the same Spirit who raised Christ from the dead now lives in us (Romans 8:11). Why then do I meet so many people who have dead areas in their lives, still awaiting Christ’s resurrection life?

I’m convinced that just about everyone has some aspect of their life in need of a resurrection. Dead hopes and dreams. Dead careers. Dead marriages. Dead relationships with parents, kids, or siblings. Or perhaps physical ailments in need of a…

The Psalmist tells us we are fearfully and wonderfully made.



It’s a lovely thought.



Until I get out of bed in the morning and my knee hurts in a way it has never hurt before for no particular reason.…

“Caleb tried to encourage the people as they stood before Moses. ‘Let’s go at once to take the land. We can certainly conquer it!’” (Numbers 13:30 NLT)

“They can conquer who believe they can.” (Ralph Waldo Emerson)

Poise is rare. Very few people remain calm in…

I love the old maxim about risk-taking: “Behold the turtle. He only makes progress when he sticks his neck out.” You see, although you may feel safer while tucked away in your thick protective shell, you’ll never get anywhere in life. Your fears will block your fulfillment, and your comfort will turn into your coffin.

I’m convinced that fear is holding many people back from the necessary steps to make progress, enjoy life, or have a significant impact. My…

I have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me. And the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me. I do not nullify the grace of God, for if righteousness were through the law, then Christ died for no purpose (Galatians…

“Humility is not thinking less of yourself, it is thinking of yourself less." (C. S. Lewis) 

There are no easy steps to humility, but here are ten hard ones—

1)       Respect God.  Observe the canopy of constellations He whispered into being and ask yourself,…

Being old has its benefits. And I don’t just mean the senior coffees at McDonalds.

I’m old enough to know that “what goes around comes around,” and King Solomon had it right when he observed that “there is nothing new under the sun” (Ecclesiastes 1:9). History really does have a habit of repeating itself, particularly if we fail to learn its lessons the first time around.

But recently I’ve come to appreciate another benefit of having lived awhile: I’ve seen that God is a…

I have a new theory—I would even call it a discovery—about two of life’s greatest mysteries. The two mysteries are related, and my theorem explains both.

The first mystery is why there are so many unhappy marriages, and the second is like it: Why is it often so difficult to find fulfillment in the modern-day churches we attend?

I call both of these “mysteries,” because God intended something far better. He created marriage and the church to be enjoyable, life-changing…

Politics, it is said, can bring out the worst in us. And note the “us.”



We pick sides, and this year the sides have been legion at times. Once picked, we defend “our man” or “our woman” or “our cause” with vehemence.



At moments it seems like one giant virtual street fight. Verbal…

“No person is in true health who cannot stand in the free air of heaven, with feet on God’s free turf, and thank the Creator for the simple luxury of physical existence.” (T. W. Higginson, 1823-1911, American clergyman and writer)

“A single grateful thought toward heaven is the most nearly perfect prayer.”…

When I was a student at Dominion Junior High in Columbus, Ohio, I had a rather idyllic life and absolutely no concept of emotional wounds. But in the past few years I’ve found myself reflecting on the lessons I learned from a physical wound I experienced in gym class one morning.

We were running track events that day, something I never was very good at. While trying to jump over a hurdle on the school’s crude cinder track, I caught my foot and plummeted to the ground. Although the…