BEYOND DESPERATE, SHE WAS FOUND BY HOPE Earlier today, I walked with my ten year old son Stephen through the National Gallery of Art here in Washington DC. I was amazed at Stephen's ability to feel the art, and to easily identify which pieces touched him and why. Both of us were mesmerized by a certain painting …
Our family has been part of a conference at Faith Bible Church in Cincinnati. Yesterday, we drove up to Goshen, Indiana. I had the most amazing run through a path in the forest. The leaves are turning all kinds of amazing colors, and it felt like the beauty of Autumn was carrying me along. Today, I drove …
Calling All Creatives! Calling All Creatives! We Need You! While riding my mountain bike a few weeks ago, I took a tumble and shattered my collarbone into five pieces. A group of villagers carried me to my house, where I was helped into the passenger seat of my car. I asked someone, “Can you tell …
Continue reading ‘Onward Christian Artist, Going as to War’ »
Re-thinking Creativity and Ministry In the season when kings mounted swift stallions, unsheathed gilded swords and went to war, one king called in sick. Following a massage and a hot bath, he stretched himself across fluffy white, goose down pillows. His mind began to whimsically drift away from the fierce battles raging outside. His thoughts …
“This is how we know what love is. Jesus Christ laid down his life for us. And we ought to lay down our lives for our brothers.” I John 3:16 For centuries, the people living in villages clustered along the south coast of Java have lived in terror of Nyai Loro Kidul, the …
When I served as a youth worker back in California, we asked the kids at our church to give a Saturday a month to serve at a convalescent home. We’d scatter through the hallways, going into the rooms of the elderly, sitting down next to their beds and listening to their stories. We’d often strum our guitars …
Continue reading ‘Joy Ride (Embracing the Seasons of Life)’ »
I LOVE IT WHEN CHURCHES send short term workers here to Southeast Asia. It’s our chance to serve those in America who have sacrificed for us to be here. We are committed to giving the folks back home a life-changing glimpse of the world beyond America’s borders. Over the years, we’ve seen some Spirited teams, and one group stands out in recent memory.
HAVE YOU EVER BEEN EMBARRASSED to hear yourself laughing exactly like a good friend laughs? Our voices often imitate someone we love and admire. This is because God has created us, his image bearers, to adopt the mannerisms of the objects of our worship. The Creator designed us to be worshiping beings. We simply can’t
THIS WEEK OVER FOUR HUNDRED children and youth from around our city converged on our school Charis. And so, a new academic year begins. Over 400 stories being created in the fusion of our CREATOR, his creativity, and his creation. Every sentence spoken, every kick of a ball, every conversation, and warm greeting another stroke of holy ink scrolled across the Creator’s canvas.