This morning in a weekly men’s Bible-study zoom, I made a potentially embarrassing revelation. Two days ago, I downloaded Pokemon Go. I know, a little late to the game, but surprisingly it is still very popular. Truth be told, on July 8, 2016, I downloaded the game to see what all the hype was about. It lasted about a week before I deleted the app. A surprise came with my pokemon experience So the question I feel I need to answer is why would a 42-year-old writer and entrepreneur download a game designed to grab your attention and never ...
A thin plate of glass stands before me protecting me from the elements. The happiness creeps in as I watch the peculiarities of the ducks and chickens outside my window. For a moment, my tears subside. Falling out of my daze and coming back to reality, the happiness fades and the tears begin to well up again. I know people in this world suffer more than I on a daily basis, but that doesn’t change the desire for and lack of joy in my life. Don’t get me wrong, I have bouts of happiness as we journey on, but ...
Now it is time to really get into the meat of this book. In chapter 3 of Start With Why by Simon Sinek, we start to learn on why we need to focus on why. As a father, one of my measures of success is in the actions my children take as they grow older. In the image, you see Emily reading the Bible. We have never, and maybe we should, outright told her that reading the Bible was a good way for her to become a better woman of God. What we have done, however, is lead by ...
Everyone on social media wants to go viral. But I wander if everyone really had the megaphones they wanted, would they really want their message heard? Even as I write this post, I wander if I had a large impact, would I be secure enough in my message that I want the world to hear it? In short, I ask myself that daily. After that fear tries to creep in, I remember that the message I am trying to yell at the rooftop is not my message, but a message given to me to pass on to you. I ...
It didn’t take long for the author of Hebrews to know that we are fragile creatures and we need our rest just like any other. Although, the chapter doesn’t just speak of our need for rest, but also to understand the power and responsibility we have after we get our rest. The first 11 of 16 verses in Hebrews chapter 4, encourages us to not feel weak because we need rest. As a matter of fact, the chapter encourages us to find time to take it easy during the continuous spiritual warfare that we are a part of. The ...
It has been a while since I talked about why I left Corporate America to pursue a passion I once thought was lost. Uprising challenges tell me to share again. This weekend we experienced disappointing parental problems, struggles with a healthy diet, broken expensive equipment, smoking vehicles, mice at play, haunting nightmares, broken sewage lines, a dead chicken, a thieving dog, a lightening strike, a power outage, faulty water pump, piling chores, cold weather, and a threat from the past. Yes, that was all in two days. In the mean time, I hear this voice in my head, “If ...
Until the arrival of Jesus on the scene, mankind relied on priests to hear our human sins and sacrifice unto God to ask for forgiveness. But how did Jesus change it all? Hebrews chapter 5 is basically split into 3 different sections. First, the author describes the fallibility of a human prints. Second, he speaks to the authority of Jesus as the ultimate high priest amongst all priests. Lastly, he speaks to our need for wise teaching and continuous learning. How is Jesus different from other priests and does it matter? I appreciate the organization of this chapter. It ...
Read this chapter slowly. If you already read chapter 3, go back and read it again and look for the opportunity to drop the knife. This chapter begins by giving the audience a little bit of a memory jog. They speak to the relationship Moses and his people had with God and point out God’s reaction to Moses’ people’s disobedience. But he doesn’t stop there. The author brings it all back home by bringing Jesus back into the conversation. Jesus is above all, including Moses, so the author poses the question of how do we think God will react ...
It wasn’t my fault. Jess was asleep in my lap and the bag of freshly baked cookies was within arms reach. I know, I know; no excuses. Over the past 3 years, we have been on and off Keto, mostly on, so my sweet tooth has all but gone away. However, sometimes I can’t resist. I joke when I say it wasn’t my fault. Of course I am in charge of my own behaviors. If I really wanted to, the bag of cookies could’ve gone undisturbed all night long. But that is not what I truly wanted. How often ...
I feel like the boy from an old film selling newspapers on the corner, but today, I am giving away mistakes for free! Yes, you heard it right, Free! I may be getting old, but I think my memory is still going strong. That being said, I can’t remember the last day where I didn’t make some sort of mistake. Whether it is yelling at my kids, forgetting to complete a promised project, or turning the sprinklers at night to water our garden, I make mistakes every day of my life. What I am learning, however, is how to ...