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Walk With Me Through the Valley Some days it’s hard to keep going. Some days are easier. You’re human. You have not been affording yourself the grace to experience the days as they are. You’re super spirituality does not allow you to acknowledge the valleys. I did not tell you that you would...

When Wandering Isn’t Losing: Trusting God’s Path “Not All Those Who Wander Are Lost” I usually talk to graduates about the quotation, “All that is gold does not glitter; not all those who wander are lost” (J. R. R. Tolkien from The Fellowship of the Ring). I usually concentrate on the first...

Forming Family Habits That Disciple: Habits of the Household In the same way that rails dictate where a train goes, our habits become grooves that often unconsciously dictate what we do and where we go. All of us have habits. Not all of our habits are good. Not all of them are patterns in our...

Eight Years of living with Chronic Illness Today is the 8th anniversary of my diagnosis with blood cancer. I had been sick for several weeks and therefore the diagnosis was not out of the blue. But what was less expected was that I would constantly struggle with chronic illnesses from then on...

Don’t Forget the Invite [ 1 min read ★ ] . . . and he will give you another Helper—John 14:16 With his time on earth ending, Jesus told his disciples, “I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Helper, to be with you forever . . .” (John 14:16-17). This Helper “will...

Doing What Is Right Is Its Own Reward Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good. “In many ways, sin is the punishment for sin. The more I choose against God’s design and give in to my sinful desires, the more I suffer even if I never get caught, even if no one else knows.” How...

Contentment – Enjoying The Process Not Just The Result But godliness with contentment is great gain, for we brought nothing into the world, and we cannot take anything out of the world. But if we have food and clothing, with these we will be content. “…One of the greatest life lessons you...

The Wise Choice I was recently speaking on the issue of sacrifice. Most people don’t really like the idea of sacrificing because they believe it is all about giving up something that is of value to them. However, consider the proper definition of sacrifice: “The forfeiture of something highly...

We’re Here, Now What? [ 1 min read ★ ] Love one another with brotherly affection—Romans 12:10 We can’t live the full lives promised to us by our King, Jesus Christ, if we’re not in regular, authentic community with other guys. And the Church* can never be the Church—not as God...

Is Doubt a Threat—or a Tool—for Christian Faith? I have increasingly encountered this Christian valorizing of doubt in sermons and informal conversations. Christian Thoughts about Doubt Frederick Buechner famously wrote that “Doubts are the ants in the pants of faith. They keep it awake and...

Mistakes in Gathering [ 1 min read ★ ] . . . if anyone thinks he is something, when he is nothing, he deceives himself—Galatians 6:3 When we men relent and finally accept that we’re designed for community with other men, we nearly always start with the wrong criteria for...

Six warning signs of a “drifting” marriage I recently sat down with a couple who have been married for a long time, but recently some relational “drift” in their marriage had slowly sent them in opposite directions like two ships that are each just slightly off course, but over time, that...

Waiting Well Does Us All Good The Lord is good to those who wait for him, to the soul who seeks him. Lamentations 3: 25 Remember that old saying, I scream, you scream, we all scream for ice cream? Well, in today’s world ice cream isn’t what’s causing most folk to run around screaming in...

Be That Guy [ 1 min read ★ ] Humble yourselves . . . under the mighty hand of God so that at the proper time he may exalt you—1 Peter 5:6 Building community in the social context—in the context of our friendships—means reworking existing friendships into...

6 Effective Ways to Apologize to Your Partner Studies show that apologizing to your partner for hurting their feelings and granting forgiveness are crucial to the success of an intimate relationship or marriage. It’s essential that couples learn the value of sincere apologies and forgiveness...

The State of My Soul I think most of you know I have worked in a men’s ministry for the last twenty years. In my past blogs I have written a good bit about my concern for men’s mental, emotional, and psychological health. There seems to be a number of causes for this. The noted American...

When the Sole Comes Off and the Soul Comes Undone When the Sole Comes Off and the Soul Comes Undone. Image created by Jeff McLain in ChatGPT. “My cleats fell apart,” my daughter shouted as we approached the front door of our house, about to leave for the second game of her softball...

Why Living Carefully Leads to a Life of Fullness Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit. Rather, in humility value others above yourselves, not looking to your own interests but each of you to the interests of others. Philippians 2:3-4 Some persons do first, think afterward, and...

Embrace the Fear [ 1 min read ★ ] . . . for man shall not see me and live—Exodus 33:20 We’re made for fear. We’re made to live with fear, not without it, as we’d like. It’s just, as so often happens, we get preoccupied with things we can see and hear and touch. But these...

Jacob’s Wrestling Match: From Trickster to Prince of God The God before whom my fathers Abraham and Isaac walked, The God who has been my shepherd all my life to this day, The angel who has redeemed me from all evil, Bless the boys; And may my name live on in them, And the names of my...