Life
The Way Home: Episode 34 featuring Vincent DiCaro
Today I am glad to be joined by my friend Vincent DiCaro, Chief Outreach Officer for Carenet. Prior to that Vincent worked at The National Fatherhood Initiative. Carenet is a national organization with over 1,100 crisis pregnancy centers. Vincent is going to talk to us about the effectiveness of Pregnancy Resource Centers, particularly in light of…
Read MoreAnything is Possible if You Work Hard . . . Until it Isn’t
“Anything is possible if you work hard . . . ” this is a message that we hear, over and over again, a credo embedded in the ethos of many Americans. I say “many” because the realities of those of us who have grown up in safe, relatively affluent suburbs is vastly different from my…
Read MorePastors, Don’t Be Passive on Planned Parenthood
This is my latest piece for Leadership Journal: how pastors can lead their churches to fight for life in this cultural moment: Pro-life activism has been a part of Christian witness throughout church history, but has received particularly focused attention by evangelicals and Catholics since the 1973 Roe v. Wade decision. Now, though, we find…
Read MoreA Moving Speech by Senator James Lankford
This is a powerful and moving speech by Senator James Lankford on the subject of Planned Parenthood. I’ve had the privilege to meet Sen. Lankford, a faithful follower of Christ. I really hope you take 8 minutes or so and watch. I pray this stirs the hearts of American consciences to protect the life of the…
Read MoreOutraged at Planned Parenthood? Here are 6 Things You Can Do Now
I hope you are, like me, outraged and sickened by the macabre Planned Parenthood practice of selling the body parts of aborted babies (let’s call them babies and not fetuses, shall we?). The gospel of Christ demands that we adopt a prolife ethic. We see every human soul as created in the image of its…
Read MoreWhat Dad taught Me: 5 Invaluable Principles I Use Every Day
My dad is a quiet man, more comfortable working with his hands than delivering a speech or writing an essay. But this doesn’t mean Dad wasn’t a teacher. Dad’s life spoke to me in ways that I still think of today. Most of these lessons were simply by following his example.
Read MoreFinding God in the Darkness
Praising God when everything is going well–that’s one thing. But what about praising God, or even finding God, when life gets dark. Let’s face it, if you’ve lived long enough you’ll experience seasons of crushing, hopeless despair and wonder where God is in the midst of it. That’s why I’m glad to see AJ. Swoboda’s…
Read MoreLee Strobel’s Crisis of Faith
Lee Strobel is a world-famous apologist who has presented arguments for the Christian faith in a variety of popular venues and has debated the sharpest secular minds. But what happened when he had his own personal crisis of faith, when a sudden illness brought him close to death? In a new and unusually personal book, Strobel talks about a fresh understanding of grace. I asked him about this in an interview for Leadership Journal:
Read MoreOn Halloween, Don’t Be That Parent
So it’s Halloween and parents everywhere are finalizing their plans for next week. Candy is purchased and placed in the requisite pumpkin bucket near the front door. Costumes are selected and purchased. And evangelical car trunks stand ready to be decorated for the church parking lot. It’s go time. But before you venture out at the…
Read MoreOn Losing a Close Friend
I just found out that my close friend and mentor, Bill Swanger, went to be with the Lord this morning at around 6:00 am. It’s really hard to put into words how much I loved Bill and how much he helped me in my ministry and in growing as a husband and father. I met…
Read MoreMy Favorite Podcasts
I’ve got about a 20 minute (sometimes 30 during school season) commute to work. I like to redeem my commute by listening to podcasts. I generally subscribe to about ten or twelve of them so I have a wide range of options when I get in the car. My moods change and my needs change…
Read MorePotshots Are Not a Spiritual Gift
It’s a bit morose and probably an exercise in ego-massaging to consider what one would wanted inscribed on his tombstone (if indeed one has left his family enough money to buy a tombstone). But indulge me for a moment. This can be a good exercise for us in that it requires us to think through just what our…
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