I just came back from my kids’ school. They invited various pastors to come and join them for a special chapel time, in order to honor the pastors for Clergy Appreciation Month. It was great being part of their chapel. It allowed me to see what the boys were learning in their chapel times. This […]
Undergraduate Retreat 2008
We are all pumped for the Undergraduate Retreat this year. We are going to make history by having our first joint retreat with 3 campuses (Northwestern University, University of Illinois-Chicago, and University of Michigan). This is going to be a great opportunity for us to cast a vision for the students […]
Heading Out to Jakarta
Now it is official – my family and I will be heading out to Jakarta, Indonesia for one year to plant our first international church. The estimated time of departure is July 2009. It has been a long journey for us to come to this point as a family. But as I look back into […]
Chicago Trip 10.13.08
It’s been great hanging out with the guys at HMCC of Chicago. Now, we are finally united in the theme for this 2008-2009 year of “Radical Love… Radical Lives.” We are praying that as we experience God’s radical love that we will be able to express our love by radically living our lives for Christ. […]
Chicago Trip 10.11.08
The family and I drove out to Josiah’s soccer game that was at Clarkston, MI (1 hour or so away from Ann Arbor). After the game, they dropped me off at the airport and now I am waiting for my flight to Chicago. I am going to share the 2008-2009 theme at HMCC of Chicago, […]
The Green Bible
As I was getting my daily dose of news and other tidbits from the internet, I came across the religion section in USA Today. There was an article on the newly released Green Bible. I guess one of the cool things about this Bible is that it lives out what it […]
Keep on Climbing
“God’s Road is all uphill, but do not tire: Rejoice that we may still keep climbing higher.” [Arthur Guiterman]
Jesus and Politics
I am pretty pumped about this Sunday’s message called, “Jesus and Politics.” I know that those two words might not mix very well especially in the secular world, but it is something that we have to try to address. This election year is pretty huge. We have the opportunity to make […]
Thankful for My Daughter
Everyday at 8:34AM EST on the Christian radio station they play a Gospel choir song that goes like, “Thank you, Je-sus…” After playing the chorus, the radio station gives out a number where people can call in and publicly give thanks to Jesus for something in their lives. Karissa and I go through this ritual […]
In Moderation
Christina has always been shouting out her mantra of “moderation, moderation, everything in moderation” to me for years. She has seen my extreme personality for the last 12+ years of marriage – whether it is getting into my coffee craze or my tea craze or my ESPN addiction, the list can go on and on. […]
Missing Mommy
It was a great reunion when Christina and Josiah came back from Indianapolis. The kids really missed their mommy and believe it or not, they missed their brother. I realized how important stability is in a home. There were many times within the last couple of days, where KiKi would sometimes wonder and ask where […]
Radical Love… Radical Lives
Tomorrow, I will be introducing our theme for the 2008-2009 year. If there is ever a theme or a message that I would want to preach on, this would be it. In many ways, this is my testimony and the testimony of many people in our church. Once a person has […]
Playing Mr. Mom
For the next few days I will be playing the role of Mr. Mom. Christina went to Indianapolis with Josiah for his premiere league soccer tournament, so I am at home with Elliot and KiKi. Christina and I are realizing that Josiah’s soccer is going to take some major commitments, as he will be traveling […]
Fireproof Your Marriage
Tonight our LIFE Group did an activity together. We decided to watch the new Fireproof movie. Since we are a married couples group and the movie was about a marriage, we thought it would be a good idea to see it. This movie was made by the same church that made […]