At the beginning of every training session, most budoka will have a time of silence known as mokusou (黙想). The purpose of this silence varies from dojo to dojo, but at its heart mokusou is about silencing the distractions and thoughts that crowd our minds and keep us from making good decisions. Most of what is asked… Read More »
The Blues
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hWqA1Z4lPHw] When I was learning the guitar, my dad had a whole bunch of blues tablature books. There were some modern players like Jeff Beck and Jerry Garcia, but most of his books were about acoustic, finger style blues. I cut my teeth on stuff like “Black Snake Moan” by Lemon Jefferson and old, old… Read More »
Learning Exercises (ugh!)
One of the key reasons I don’t do conferences is that inevitably someone wants you to do some kind of “learning exercise.” I am a high-brain, verbal learner which means that I learn best by taking in information and teaching others, and most “learning exercises” do nothing for me. At the Biblical Imagination Conference we… Read More »
I Don't Like Being Away
This morning, our beloved congregation will worship without us. Nichole and I are in Syracuse, New York for a conference and concert. I’ll be completely honest. I don’t like being away. It is more nerve-wracking than being there. When you invest so much of yourself into something you believe is God’s thing, you become very… Read More »
Childlike Wonder
I wouldn’t trade being the father of a little girl for anything in the world. My sister has five sons (ages 11-1), and I have a couple of friends with lots of boys. I wouldn’t mind having a boy as well, but Ariel is a tremendous joy. Her friend Paige comes over a couple times… Read More »
Effective Communication
Michael Hyatt recently posted a summary of what he believes is the four keys to effective communication: Effective communicators know how to prepare a message with a singular and crystal clear focus. If you know where you are going, you can take anyone with you. If you aim at nothing, you will hit it every… Read More »
Reading an Antitheist Former Pastor's Blog
I have taken to reading Bruce Gerencser’s blog. Bruce is a former pastor who left the pastorate in 2003, the church in 2008 and theism in 2011. He is an open and vocal antitheist who has no problem attacking Christianity, the church and individual believers. You might ask why I would read such a thing? Because… Read More »
Only Six Months Until Football
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aIkqNiBASfI] If you don’t know me well, then you don’t know that I don’t watch other sports. I watch football. Since I was five years old, I have been a Tampa Bay Buccaneers fan despite the fact that I have never been to Tampa and did not even step foot on Florida soil until my… Read More »
We're Not Designed for This
So, here’s a scenario for you. Say that you are a thirty-three year old female diagnosed with thyroid cancer. You have your thyroid surgically removed, but there is no way to remove all of the tissue so the recommended course of treatment is to receive radioiodine treatment. You go to the hospital and while you’re… Read More »
"To Be With God"
Heaven.
That place where you go when you die. First, you stroll through the pearly gates and meet St. Peter, then you get a crown and a mansion and can eat all you want. There’s a temple and lots of holy people around, angels singing from the clouds. You get a harp. It’s great.
Of course, that image is entirely wrong. Oh, some of it is in the Scriptures, but the way we perceive it and the way it will truly be are two different things.
