Restless
Recently, several people have asked me, “What are you thinking right now?” When I can answer, it’s usually something that has little to do with the present, or even related to why I am there with...
A Place to Belong
John and I spent the first five months of our courtship on separate continents. We communicated by email on the weekends and staticky phone calls once a month. That was sixteen years ago, back in...
Let Faith and Love Guide Us
The further we get from 1st century life and culture, the more the sense of mystery pervades our reading of the New Testament. But wait, you might be thinking, the Bible is God’s Word. Doesn’t that...
The Beyond
Of all the characteristics that set humans apart from animals, one in particular fascinates me. This distinction is that we are not bound to the present. Unlike the animal kingdom, people live in a...
Missions and the Epistles
We’ve all heard people who think the Great Commission applies only to the apostles. They point to the epistles as justification for “not putting so much emphasis” on missions. On the surface, one...
Why Missionaries Go to Dangerous Places
During a conversation about the recent political crisis in Afghanistan, a child said, “When I grow up, I want to be a missionary to Afghanistan.” He didn’t understand the implications of his choice,...
His Fountain, His Touch
I hung up the phone and sat down to process what I just heard. The caller, a close friend of mine, was severely questioning his decision to join a full time outreach program his church was...
Church: God’s Only Plan
Although the Church may be suffering from the effects of political idolatry, sex scandals, and lethargic members, we must never forget the view that Paul and Jesus had of the Church. They did not...
Unattached
In June 2019, we rented a little yellow house from a man with thirteen children. It didn’t require a logic degree to know that our lease would be temporary. No surprise—a year and a half later, a...
To Stop
In 2020, l learned what it meant to stop. Although I love action and have no room for laziness, the events surrounding the COVID crisis taught me to value stepping back from my pursuits long enough...