I have never had a good sense of timing and probably never well. On Valentine’s Day last week, I shared the thoughts from Trey Morgan’s guest blogger with Jan. I thought they very were amusing. The blog included a list of gifts not to give him, and a similar off limits gift list for her. One of the things on the off limits list for a male gift was: mushy cards. In fact this is exactly what guest blogger Amanda…
I recently shared the following quote with my friends: Friends are those rare people who ask how we are and then wait to hear the answer. I received two insightful responses regarding this quality of friendship. The first one: and to add to that statement, they listen to the response with sincerity. That is so true! The second response…Friends also want to hear the honest answer of how you are doing also. I concur. If they are real friends, that…
I am going to be banned from uncle-hood from my own my sweet wife. She has determined that I am probably not the best influence on her two nephews and her niece as well, who range in age from 3 to 8. I don’t put limits on their cookie consumption. I nearly let them watch a movie that had, as the five year old said: shooting and fighting. And then when the little precious three year old came in…
Pick on someone your own size. That is precisely what I want to tell people who wield their criticism toward the most vulnerable among us: the youngest, the one with the least experience or in some cases the person with a truly tender heart. I recently took note of a facebook status in which a longtime friend stated this: I hate that “constructive” criticism shakes my confidence so much. It’s hard to face your shortcomings when you put so…
rr Those of us who preach nearly fifty sermons a year sometimes wonder if anyone out there is listening. In fact, there are times that I want to say: Are any of you tuned into the sermon channel at this moment? Something of great significance happened last Sunday that provided some positive confirmation. Last Sunday I preached a sermon entitled: The Taming Process that Never Ends. Scripture confirms that the tongue can never be tamed. It is very difficult for…
I don’t ever remember getting lost in Sears when I was a little boy. We did not have Walmart back in the day, but my mother did frequent Sears and Woolworths. I was also coerced into shopping for clothes for my sisters several times a year at the mall. I tried my best to be a royal thorn in their flesh, so I would not be invited back. It never worked. My mother continued to load me in our Plymouth…
Good intentions are not sufficient. We can have the best of intentions, but if we choose not to play by the rules, it will get us in trouble. I have been following the story of the church group who attempted to transport a number of young earthquake refugees from Haiti across the border into the Dominican Republic. News reports indicate that the group could be charged with human trafficking. I am not there, so I don’t have all of the…
I had the distinct opportunity of attending a seminar this weekend that focused on listening skills. It was very helpful. It was very interactive, so all of us were forced to practice the skills that we were being taught. The most significant things I learned over these past two days are not only related to the goal of critical listening. First of all, I was reminded that good people will do foolish things when they are under enough stress. The…
I never cease to be amazed at the endless connections that exist between people from diverse backgrounds and life circumstances. What could a CEO of a major company possibly have in common with a teenager coming from a broken home? A teenager who is living in a household teetering on poverty…We see that child and dozens of others like him on a weekly basis. Every Wednesday we open the doors of the church and welcome well over 50 high…
I know it seems really late in the game to be reflecting on the events surrounding Christmas of 2009, but I just received Gil Sanchez’s December Report from Casa De La Esperanza yesterday. Casa is a children’s home in Northern Mexico. Casa serves infants all the way to young adults who are 18 years old. It is a great place!I have been fortunate enough to coordinate several medical mission trips to Casa over the past several years. The following…