In Tale of Two Cities, Charles Dickens tells the story of a physician who was imprisoned in a French penitentiary for twenty years. Unable to practice medicine, he took up shoe cobbling while incarcerated, making and fixing shoes for his fellow inmates. For twenty years, he could be heard working in his cell late at night, tapping away, repairing the shoes of prisoners.

There are days, and sometimes weeks, when disappointing circumstances can seem overwhelming. You feel like you're barely keeping your emotional head above the water, and then you see a giant wave approaching.

“I wish the preaching in our church was deeper.” Yes, I’ve heard that. Maybe you’ve said it. By “deep preaching,” we typically mean…scholarly teaching, in-depth word studies, and theological paradigms.

The trouble is…that’s not how Jesus taught.

Passing our faith on to the next generation is a big deal to us at The Bridge. We never say, “Kids are the future church.” Kids ARE the church, every bit as much as you and me!

So why do we encourage parents to put their kids in Bridge Kids and not bring them into the service?

So you’re not a winter person. You endure the cold and the snow, but it’s not something you love. I’m not a fan either. I grew up in Wisconsin, and have lived in the cold and snow all my life. I’ve never gotten to the place where I’m ok with the weather. But winter has become possibly my most productive and spiritually/emotionally invigorating time of the year. Let me give you some tips.

The Seven Habits of Highly Successful People changed my life 30 years ago. I read the book in two days on New Year’s Eve and New Year’s Day, 1992-1993. Before that, I had made meager attempts at setting goals. But starting that Friday, January 1, 1993, I became very serious about it. I set four lifetime goals, about a dozen long-term goals (10 years), and another dozen 1 year goals. And my life was changed in a significant way.