Desperate to avoid (dealing with) death
Recently I spoke at a conference of Retirement Community Chaplains. My thesis was that people who deal with the vicissitudes of life best tend to deal best with the reality of death. There are...
View ArticleCan I give you a ride?
I like giving people rides. As I live and work in the same neighborhood with a high concentration of poverty, I find the opportunity arises quite often. It’s a simple act of kindness that gives me joy...
View ArticleGaza children learn NC Christians care about them
As the bombs began to fall, we grieved that we could leave but they could not. My wife, Emily and I are members of Watts Street Baptist Church in Durham, N.C. In November, 2012, we had the unique...
View ArticleThe heroics of helping others
Who prefers discomfort to comfort? Not me, but sometimes, it’s necessary. I favor tasty food, sweet smells, a good night’s rest (plus an afternoon nap, if possible). I enjoy warm, moderate...
View ArticleAnchors Away
Not long ago I was sitting on a dock, watching boats scoot across the lake, when one of my wife’s co-workers started talking about her daughter. I learned she was in her late twenties, not too far...
View Articledisinterested religion + the art of unemployment
Occasionally, there are days-and even moments within days-when heavy clouds pull in front of the sun, blocking its light from view and casting everything in the empty parking lot outside my office...
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Robin Williams and the church
As most everyone has heard, Robin Williams died on Tuesday from an apparent suicide. The reaction on Facebook and Twitter was one of shock. How could someone who brought so much joy and humor to the...
View ArticleFriends in the Valley of Shadows
I remember it like it was yesterday. Except it was 2005, and it wasn’t a single instance. It was two years after I graduated, and I was living with two of my best friends from college. And, I wanted...
View ArticleBeware of addiction — and know its signs
“To be alive is to be addicted, and to be alive and addicted is to stand in need of grace.” Gerald May For reasons that go back a few generations, I am interested in addiction. I have studied it, and I...
View ArticleWedding toast
Julie and Tom come from parents and families that have been good examples to them for almost three decades. I am grateful that their success in marriage does not depend on one of us giving a brilliant...
View ArticleSaying goodbye
I conducted a memorial service recently for a friend who passed away after a lengthy illness. The service was a time of celebration among family and friends for a life well lived. Despite the lengthy...
View ArticleExperiencing the seasons — including those of life
After living in Orlando, Florida for ten and a half years, my wife and I longed for seasons other than hot and rainy. Moving to Dalton, Georgia three years ago this November we were reminded of what we...
View Article‘We admitted we were powerless….’
You don’t have to get on an airplane or traverse an ocean to make discoveries. About twenty-five years ago, I began visiting church basements and other community rooms where, once or twice each week,...
View ArticleHealing (a parable)
Leah was getting burned out. She didn’t know if she could continue at this pace. The solutions were more draining than the problem. Leah had a troubled past. Having been abused by her father, rejected...
View ArticleTake care of yourself
About twenty years ago, as our daughters were becoming adults, I began using a parting mantra that was new to me. Instead of a simple “Good-bye” or “I love you” or “Be good,” I began to say, “Take care...
View ArticleIf spiritual gifts are from God, why do they make you uncomfortable?
Many years ago when walking down the hall in the building where I worked, I decided I would stop by Ken’s office and ask about him. It was discovered several months earlier that Ken had a growth behind...
View ArticleDying well, part 1
Do you want to die well? Do you want to die with dignity? I suspect that desire resides in the hearts of just about everyone. But, what does it really mean to die well? I’ll admit, at 32 and...
View ArticleDying well, part 2
In part one I asked some big questions, shared the tragic story of Brittany Maynard, and offered a quick explanation as to why we as Christians cannot support her decision to end her life “on her own...
View ArticleThe benefits and drawbacks of boundaries
I have a love/hate relationship with boundaries. On the plus side, they protect my family and me and all that I care about. Years ago a friend said, “Your right to swing your arm stops where my nose...
View ArticleWe really do love you, honey, but…
While some parents like the surprise element, my wife and I wanted to know. I remember the moment with each of our boys. We headed to the doctor for a regular checkup with a bonus: an ultrasound....
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