I’m currently sitting in a coffee shop in Hayward next to a group of people talking a lot and sharing lots of stories. After the group had been sitting for a bit, another member arrived. Someone in the group asked this late arrival if she was running on “Spanish time” I might not have thought […]
A friend of mine was sharing a story about a time (some 20 years ago) when he was at Lake Hayward Beach area (in Hayward, WI) and a mother was asking her older daughter to get out of the lake because they were heading home. The daughter back-talked her mother (in public) and added a […]
This post is for parents who are new to the cell phone and internet connected world of teenagers and usage patterns. It should come as no surprise that teens text, on average, 2108 times per month. Actually this number is down from a few years ago when it was up around 4000. I imagine other […]
How to play the “Cookie Flip” game: Supplies cookies (chips ahoy seem to work the best) flat cookie cooking pan Instructions start with a cookie on the cooking pan participants must flip the cookie up in the air, then flip the cooking pan over, and catch the cookie the goal can be to flip and catch one […]
Jefferson Bethke did an interview with Tim Keller and asked him: What encourages and discourages you about the millennial generation? Keller shares, “What I see in the younger generation has a positive and negative side… of the same coin.” On the positive side, Keller states: “I’ve never seen a generation so interested in community.” And on […]
Back in the Spring, our family took a trip to Walt Disney World in Orlando, FL. We had so much fun on this trip… especially our girls! One day, as we were riding on the Magic Kingdom train, I remembered a story from back in college. Some friends and I climbed on top of a […]
Jefferson Bethke did an interview with Tim Keller and asked him: Why is sex outside of marriage so destructive? Keller shares, “Porn is destructive because if sex is like money, then porn is the massive devaluation of the currency. Sex inside of a committed marriage is magic…” So what’s good about faithful, committed, long-term sex in marriage? HT […]
Back in 2009, I made a sort of memory video of the previous ministry with the purpose of promoting the next year’s ministry cycle. Recently I was cleaning out my Vimeo account (deleting videos I didn’t want online as well as recategorizing everything), and I came across this video. It was nostalgic for me. I […]
Jefferson Bethke did an interview with Tim Keller and asked him: How does Christianity help us deal with evil and suffering? Keller shares, “Every single culture and every single religion helps its members in some way deal with evil and suffering because everybody is going to experience it.” So what makes Christianity special when it comes […]
When I taught on the Tabernacle back in May 2013, I wanted the students to get a sense of the actual size of the Tabernacle. Now I couldn’t build a Tabernacle, but I could stake out the dimensions of the Tabernacle. So I went to the local hardware store in Hayward and bought some supplies: […]
I am almost as much of a fan of Tim Keller as I am of N.T. Wright. Keller speaks with such clarity and cultural relevance regarding the Christian faith and the core tenets and application of the Gospel. I appreciate Tim Keller’s wisdom when he shares it. Jefferson Bethke did an interview with Keller and asked […]
“Dave Kinnaman’s recent book You Lost Me offers [a] sobering look at the status quo of the church. Based on an extensive survey, Kinnaman notes six primary factors for students disconnecting from church. Devoting a chapter to each, he summarizes the six as: over-protective toward youth; shallow in their teaching aimed at students; antiscience (just […]
I’m a big fan of N.T. Wright. I have been heavily influenced by his teachings on Jesus and the kingdom of God as well as his perspective on Paul. I’ve listened to a couple of graduate courses by Wright as well as countless seminars and conference lectures. Needless to say, when N.T. Wright speaks, I […]
We have a tradition at Hayward Wesleyan Church…the week before the teenagers head back to school we put on what we call the… Back 2 School Bash The staple at this annual event is playing with mud. We have devised several muddy and gross games to enhance this unique, fun, one-of-a-kind event. And, for your […]
This past week I had been invited to share at Victory Mountain Camp’s 2nd and 3rd grade Kids Camp. I was on deck to share 4 sessions: Sunday, Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday nights. I used these slides to introduce myself that week:
I found myself behind a very slow moving vehicle on my way home from the church the other day. I wasn’t too worried because I thought surely this car doesn’t the EXACT route I take home. Before that sentiment proved faulty, I recognized the vehicle! It belonged to my next door neighbor! They are a […]
Back in March we went through the rationale of the Fall of Judah and the exile of the southern 2 tribes of Judah. Here is a list of the kings of Judah, the years of their reign, and whether they did evil in the sight of the LORD (-) or good in the sight of […]
Back in March we went through the rationale of the Fall of Samaria and the exile of the northern 10 tribes of Israel. Here is a list of the kings of Israel, the years of their reign, and whether they did evil in the sight of the LORD (-) or good in the sight of […]
“Jesus looked at him and loved him” (Mark 10:21a) I think the wealthy man who asks Jesus how to inherit eternal life wanted Jesus to pat him on the back for all of his obedience of the commandments. I think the man wanted Jesus to say something like: “Way to go! I’m so proud of […]
I had to apologize to Sari a while back. We were playing UNO as a family and Sari came around the coffee table and wanted to tickle me. She poked her finger in my neck. I really didn’t want to be tickled at that moment (in fact, I hate being tickled), so I chided her: […]