No, you won’t be reading a critique of this book by the pastor of a huge church, but Unconventional will touch on the concept. What is our best spiritual life? Is it now? Can we have it now? If so how do we grab it?Two issues arise that keep us from the best. First...
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The Look of Faith
What does authentic faith look like? For a clue, check out the pic above and the story of Abraham in Genesis. A pretty good example of faith, he set out blindly following God, and became the father of the Jewish people, who in turn gave us Jesus. But his journey included some missteps. Serious ones. Sometimes repeated ones. So, let’s...
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image from Sunset Magazine
Garden Walking
Just what does it mean to “follow” Jesus? Not long ago, for many it just meant being an American. That day is done. Obeying God? That’s important, but being good is not good enough. Telling people you follow? That expression is crucial, but not central. Going to church? Nope, going to church makes you no more of a Christian than going into a barn makes you a horse. Years back I came across a verse that began a change process in me.Jesus proclaimed...
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Achieving
For the last five years of my teaching career, I had the privilege of teaching Advanced Placement English Language and Composition, a course that had the most practical significance of all I taught over several decades.It had two portions—a semester examining style, or how to use words for the best effect, and another semester on persuasion, or how to analyze or craft political speeches, sales pitches, or asking your folks to borrow the car. Regardless of your political leanings, these ...
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When Pigs Fly
Don’t let those wings deceive you, that pig will remain earthbound. It represents the impossible, like when Hell freezes over. So let’s consider if the impossible exists. Absolutely, and here’s one—me being drafted to play center on an NBA team. In my prime I had white man’s disease to the max, with a vertical lift of six inches, and even at 5’11” my speed just exceeded the normal turtle. Now add 50 years, and clearly the impossible does exist. But perhaps it’s not as pervasive as we often think...
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A Tale of Two Patios
Not long after moving back into our Temecula house, we totally rebuilt our back yard. A contractor put in a covered patio, then I took out the lawn and added pavers, took out dead trees and pathetic plants and put in fruit trees and other plants along the perimeter, added a garden shed, a waterfall, hanging lights, and a fire pit. Honestly, for this retired pastor/teacher, our backyard became a paradise I likely won’t exceed until I experience the final one.But we noticed the temptation...
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image from Diamond Canyon Christian Church
Back to Our Future
Satchel Paige, star of the old Negro League and Major League Baseball, once advised, “Don’t look back, someone might be gaining on you.” Like most “rules,” that too possesses an exception. I experienced that yesterday. Jim Price, a friend from 50 years back retired from pastoring a church for the past 37 years, and the organizers of the celebration asked me to share five minutes. Condensing 50 years into five minutes forces a lot of recollections and refining and focusing. Here’s my take—Jim is ...
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Weed and Feed
Spring arrives with blessings and curses. Daylight lasts longer, days warm up, plants grow. Consider those not only as blessings but also as curses. Why? Undesired weeds abound along with desired plants. While I put in a front patio with pavers and a lattice cover and pots and a drip system and plants, the weeds on our south bank took full advantage of my neglect and spring’s blessings. The curse of spring. Four days of weeding on a steep slope moved the undesired plants into four wheelbarrow loads, like the one above. I couldn’t avoid...
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