As I sit outside on this cool summer evening overlooking the beautiful greenery in our backyard, I see the beauty of God’s creation, and I’m reminded of God’s many blessings. Many times, I find it much easier to reflect on troubles and the things I wish were different or the things that “were not supposed to be this way” instead …
Most Christians will automatically think of Jesus from the title, and rightly so, as he is God’s most costly and lavish gift to us! But we will surely be missing the breadth of God’s love if we overlook the gifts He gives to us each day and throughout different stages in our lives. Think of someone that you really tried …
Several years ago, a client – a pest control company – asked me to update its blog with a piece about how mice can crawl into walls and air ducts to die. As their bodies decay, they harm the air quality in the house to the point of causing respiratory problems for its inhabitants. Working on this article was disturbing …
As iron sharpens iron, so one person sharpens another. (Proverbs 27:17) Dear Men of GRC, This is for you. Thursday men’s study (TMS) began after Fred and I started to talk about what would be a good way to engage the men at our church. We decided to start a men’s Bible study on Thursday nights, from 8 PM – …
Ask most people what May 5 is, and the response will no doubt be “Cinco de Mayo!” Ask them what that means, and you’ll get blank looks (FYI, it commemorates the victory of Mexico over France at the Battle of Puebla, not Mexican Independence Day, and not the discovery of guacamole). Then tell people that last Thursday was Ascension Day, …
I like to have a plan. Ask anyone who knows me and has shared life with me. I don’t do spontaneous or “go with the flow”. I do elaborate spreadsheets and detailed outlines for projects, events, even vacations (I know what you’re thinking – I sound like a super fun person to be around!). When something unexpected is proposed, I’m …
My Savior is Found in Scripture, Not a Spreadsheet Read More »
Imagine a scene in your mind. You’re helping a friend set up for a yard sale when she sets out a beautiful old violin and music books for sale. It seems much too beautiful of an instrument to markdown so dramatically to sell at a yard sale, and so you ask her about it. She explains that she first learned to …
Hello GRC! [This is Part 2 of 2 – read last week’s Part 1 article]. So what does a pastor do on sabbatical, which can be infrequent for most pastors and non-existent for many? One pastor I know left NYC on the first day of his sabbatical, went to Scotland where his family rented a place and didn’t return until the week his …
Hello GRC! Over a year ago, as we were still learning about the “novel coronavirus” and naively thinking we’d be back to normal routines within weeks, we held a Town Hall meeting – via a livestream – because it happened to be the first Sunday when we decided, before the government ordered us, to cancel in-person worship. It was March …
Most children growing up in Nigeria know what “hear word” means. It’s the expression your parents use when they mean to say, “listen to wise instruction because you so often don’t!” This saying would sometimes be followed by the ominous “a word is enough for the wise”. Of the many Nigerian-isms I love, “hear word” is one of my favorites for …