The family across the street from us has a great, classic-style nativity scene in their front yard. It’s got three wise men with gifts, a Mary and Joseph, a shepherd boy with a lamb, and a manger. Sadly, there’s no Jesus – I suspect because...
Read moreExpectations
Christmas Eve is probably one of the most anticipated days of the year in the United States. Kids have been out of school for a week or two, homes are beginning to fill with family and friends arriving to celebrate Christmas together, and...
Read moreGod with us
God with us. This time of year that phrase seems to roll off the tongue when we sing Christmas carols or hymns that speak of Christ’s coming to earth as a child. Do we really grasp the meaning of the phrase though? God with us. We have this...
Read moreThe Love of the Father
In 1906, two chubby twins – a boy and a girl – were born to a prominent middle-class family in Breslau, Germany. It was a big family with eight kids, and they were a tight-knit clan. Their father was a distinguished professor of...
Read moreClinging to Joy
In 1870, Horatio Spafford was a successful Chicago lawyer, with a 4- year old son and four older daughters. Life was good, happy, full of promise. I imagine Christmas at the Spaffords in 1870 was full of laughter, the kind of Normal Rockwell type...
Read moreThe Comforter Has Come
Since this is “the most wonderful time of the year, I want to tell you about the least wonderful time of the year. For a sports guy like me, the All-Star Break over the summer is a sort of annual crisis. For a full week, there are no sports on...
Read moreDesperately Seeking
On the night after Thanksgiving 2008, a crowd of more than 2,000 people gathered in the parking lot of a suburban New York Wal-Mart. They were waiting for the store to open, with Black Friday savings to be had. As the 5am opening neared, the...
Read moreOvercoming the Darkness
When I was in college, I was maybe not the most focused student. There was far too much fun stuff to do, and in most (non-math-related) classes, I could more or less get away with it. During finals one year, my friend Trez (who usually planned...
Read moreThe Hopes and Fears of All the Years
One of my all-time favorite movies (and books) is The Princess Bride. I’ll pause while those of you who haven’t seen it consider revoking my Man Card, but just remember: it’s got Andre the Giant in it. For those of you who have seen it, you’ll...
Read moreMirror Mirror on the Wall…
One of the simplest ways to entertain a kid is a funhouse mirror. You know what I mean: the mirrors that change the way you look. There’s the wavy one that compresses some parts of me, while stretching out others. There’s the one that makes your...
Read moreResponding Well When God Puts the Squeeze on You
I once heard a profound – and memorable – analogy from a youth worker: “People are like zits. When pressure is applied, you discover just how much nastiness is hiding under the surface.” With that visual in your mind, think back to...
Read moreWhen Feeling Small is a Good Thing
My wife and I have very different definitions of “camping.” Growing up in New Mexico, camping meant backpacking into the mountains and living for several days in a tent off what we brought in with us. Good times. My wife likes a different kind of...
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