Thirty years ago, I went to pick up my son from the children’s ministry after services. I had my ID card, but his tag had fallen off so they would not release him to me. As we waited for a...
It was a warm spring day in the Midwest. The grade school was having its first track meet. The children were as excited to be running as they were to shed their sweatshirts after the long winter. The...
The time was 1970. The place was my best friend’s basement. We held our spears in our hands (pool sticks). My friend spouted off, “You just think you are ‘holier-than-thou.’” We were...
It’s been a long time since I searched the couch cushions for change. But not that long. I grew up feeling like my cup was half empty. Other people had plenty, but I needed to scrape by. I’d count...
I’ve been reading a book called “If You Will Ask” by Oswald Chambers. There’s a chapter called “The Simplicity of Prayer”, and it’s all about Jesus’s time right before His crucifixion....
My first attempts at evangelism completely blew up in my face. Like today’s Scripture passage suggests (1 Peter 3:15), I learned I needed to soften my approach. So now, I intentionally ask people...
In the early days at Willow, a group of us met on Sunday nights. It couldn’t really be called a small group because we were large when we started. Some of us attended Willow, but others didn’t. We...
Far from family (intentionally), friends and familiar surroundings, my early 20’s in Oregon was both the adventure of a lifetime and three very lonely years. Although Jesus was my very real and...
Another mundane day in the hospital passed by. Meds. Shower. Eat. Sleep. These ordinary activities filled my day, although time seems to drag when you’re sick and in pain.