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Sometimes we start over on a project because we want to….unsatisfied with the way it is going. Other times we start over because we have to...like when we forget to save a document and the computer freezes. Sometimes we should start over but don’t. Timanthes was an aspiring Greek artist in the Roman era. While studying under a well respected tutor, he was nearing completion of a major painting when upon arriving in the morning, he found the canvas blotted out with paint. Enr

We all have Christmas memories. Mine are probably as varied as yours. Lots of happy ones, and some lonely ones. One year while in college, I did not have a home to go back to. I stayed in one of the dorms my college made available for overseas students during Christmas break. While lots of friends invited me to join their families, I decided to work as many hours as I could and declined the invitations. One of the jobs I had was working as a night watchman for a factory locat

Seventy years ago this morning, as I am writing this, the United States was thrust into world power status via a surprise attack that almost devastated her Navy. It was a horrible day. Thousands lost their lives. Many thousands more lost their loved ones. With untold millions of dollars worth of equipment, buildings, ships and airplanes destroyed, especially at the tail end of The Great Depression, the attacking nation had hoped the US military would be relegated to a minor t

I read a spoof article today, announcing a new drug that is supposedly now on the market, promising a cure for the common cold. Within 6 hours, all cold symptoms will be gone and the underlying virus will be eradicated. A spokesperson for the company was quoted as saying, “We’re excited and happy to do the public some good.” But then the article went on to explain that as with all medications, there are some side effects. Here are some associated with this new miracle drug: H

A middle school student in Idaho won first prize in a project he did for his school’s science fair. He wanted to show how conditioned Americans have become to accept junk science without thinking through published studies or their conclusions. In his project he urged people to sign a petition demanding strict control or total elimination of the chemical "dihydrogen monoxide." Before asking them to sign the petition, he showed them the dangers associated with this chemical. T

I fly fairly often and I enjoy it. But there have been those moments while sitting in that chair 30,000 feet in the air, streaking across the sky in excess of 500 mph, when I’ve thought to myself, “I hope this guy got As in his aviation classes.” We tend to just trust the guy in the pilot seat. And we should. These guys (and gals) have a huge amount of training and have passed multiple exams, as well as hundreds of hours of flight time before they even make it to co-pilot. Th

As a young man starting in ministry and working a secular job at the same time, I made a mistake in my work and said, “Sorry boss, that was my bad. It won’t happen again.” To my surprise he responded, “Don’t apologize. In business, you’re viewed as weak when you admit you’re wrong. Just move on and correct your mistakes, but don’t apologize.” Wow! I was pretty surprised. This business owner was a Christian, yet he told me that I shouldn’t apologize when wrong. I have since le

I went into the bank the other day and was struck by the vault being left wide open and unattended, while I was filling out a deposit slip with a pen that was chained to the counter. Does that seem ironic to you? I’m guilty of those little hypocritical gestures….such as ordering a burger, fries, and then a DIET Coke–hahaha. A friend of mine used to leave his new $30,000+ car in the driveway, because his $1,000 camper was taking up the garage space. I could go on and on with t

I appreciate what the Christian radio stations are trying to do. After all, you’re not going to hear “Pastor Appreciation Month” being promoted in church! So the Christian radio stations do their best this one month out of the year to encourage church members to express appreciation to their pastors. And I want to thank all four of you that I’ve heard from. Hahaha -- I’M KIDDING! In all honesty, most of us pastors are not crazy about Pastor Appreciation Month. Not that we

I have a cute video from when our kids were young, that I ran across the other day. I’m not sure how old Junior was but he was explaining to me how he had had to jump from furniture to furniture without touching the floor because it was “hot .” I tried to correct him, “You mean hot ?” But he would have none of it. He knew the word. So he corrected me and slowly mouthed the words, thinking I didn’t really know. I tried to explain to him that the word was actually “lava” but i

I am surprised by how the death of Steve Jobs has affected me. Celebrities die all the time, and I am saddened with each death, especially when there is a question as to the person’s relationship with Christ. But hearing of Jobs’ death was different for me. I’ve been an Apple evangelist since before I knew anyone else who used their products. I bought my first Mac in 1985 (I know––before some of you were born and before most of you thought of using a computer!). I left for a

Maybe you are guilty of it. Most of us have gotten pretty angry at least once with some self-centered driver cutting off others and endangering everyone while trying to shave off 30 seconds or so of his or her commute. I’ve had to do a fair amount of confession myself after my angry reaction to roadway narcissists. But this guy down in Corbin, Kentucky takes first prize in my book. Not so much because of what he did, but look at the circumstances. Clyde White of Corbin, Ky.,

Do you work out, run, lift weights, walk, bike, or otherwise get a good dose of exercise? I hope so! If you are not exercising regularly, starting and sticking with it will change your life! Mayo clinic recently put out a report on regular physical exercise, listing seven benefits (controls weight, combats health conditions and diseases, improves mood, promotes better sleep, puts the spark back into your sex life, and can be a lot of fun!) Paul says that our bodies are temple

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, but wanting to keep himself useful and occupied, he took up the trade of shoe cobbler while incarcerated, making and fixing shoes for his fellow inmates. For twenty years, he could be heard working away in his cell late at night, tapping away, repairing the shoes of prisoners. Finally, during the French Revolution,

Yesterday was bill paying day. Isn’t that fun? Hahaha! Actually, with modern technology, I’ve taken a lot of the work out of it. I pay pretty much all of it online, and have as many automatic payments going out as possible. But Linda and I still sit down every two weeks and review our budget, look at the amounts of the checks going out (or auto-withdrawals) and make sure the payments are in line with the bills. While we’ve gone paperless and automatic, it still requires our r

I enjoy reading. I’m usually in the middle of 2-3 books at a time. I tend to read a fiction or biography, a ministry or leadership related book, and some kind of a personal or devotional book, simultaneously. I’m currently reading a book about a gambling addict and how it destroyed his life and the lives of others (hence last week’s blog), a secular book on leadership and teamwork, a book on the church and global outreach, as well as rereading C.S. Lewis’s “Mere Christianity.

If you live in the northwest suburbs, you know that the eagerly sought after and long awaited Des Plaines is now open. There is a lot of excitement surrounding it, new jobs are available (for the benefit of some in our church), new business in the community is promised, and both casual and serious gamblers are happy to have entertainment so near. No doubt, this is a big deal for Des Plaines. But is this big deal good? Of course, there is a huge debate surrounding the economi

I turned the TV on last night while getting ready for bed and saw parts of an old rerun of . In this episode, Carrie (the wife) learns that Doug’s (the husband) parents’ dog, Rocky, is 28 years old. Having a hard time believing that, she inquired further, only to learn from his mother that this particular dog was actually Rocky IV, who was only a few years old, unbeknownst to Doug. The previous three Rockys all died, but they didn’t want to "upset Doug", so they just replaced

In , Kent Hughes told the following story: “Some years ago a young man approached the foreman of a logging crew and asked for a job. ‘That depends,’ replied the foreman. ‘Let’s see you fell this tree.’ The young man stepped forward and skillfully felled a great tree. Impressed, the foreman exclaimed, ‘Start Monday!’ “Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday rolled by, and Thursday afternoon the foreman approached the young man and said, ‘You can pick up your paycheck on the way o

Twenty-seven years ago this very moment (as I am typing), I was in the middle of making a life-long eternity altering commitment. I said, “I do” and Linda said the same. Not too long after that, my groomsmen tackled me and literally locked a ball and chain on to my ankle! I went through most of the rest of that afternoon carrying the ball and chain….and asking people for the key to get it unlocked! But, I want you to know, Linda, I have never thought of our marriage as bondag