Ken

Somewhere today, a husband is watching a Hallmark movie against his will. I know this because today happens to be our 35th anniversary, and I’ve learned the pattern. Stage one is mockery. Small-town shop owner meets big-city executive. You are asked to leave the room. Stage two is pretending to be interested. Stage three is being allowed to fall asleep. Stage four is permission to watch something else in another room. In the Hallmark world, everything always ends with a smile. But real life does not play by Hallmark rules. For many people, Christmas is complicated. It can remind us of someone who is missing, either because of death or disagreement. Laughter fades, January arrives, the lights come down, and the credit card bill shows up. And for a lot of people, the joy doesn’t last. That’s why Advent matters. It reminds us that real joy is not something you…

Most of us spend our lives trying to shine. We want to be noticed, feel needed, and prove that we matter. Success can feel like a scoreboard, and many of us are quietly keeping track. But here’s something I’ve learned over the years. The harder we try to outshine others, the less peace we often feel. Why is that? Because real peace has a source. And it is not found in self-promotion or performance. We experience real peace when our lives are aligned with God. A Man on a Mission Before we look at today’s passage, it helps to clear up something that can be confusing. There are two Johns in this story. One is John the Apostle, the author of the Gospel and a close friend of Jesus. The other is John the Baptist, a fiery prophet who lived in the wilderness, dressed in camel hair long before it…

Everything feels different in the dark. Darkness has a way of magnifying things. Our fears grow louder. Confusion settles in. Loneliness feels heavier. I know some of you are living in that space right now. Uncertainty. Illness. Grief. An endless gray that doesn’t seem to lift. Advent does not ignore that reality. It does not pretend life is neat or easy. Advent is honest about the darkness. But it also makes this bold claim: no darkness in your life is stronger than the light of Jesus. Light Before the Manger John’s Gospel begins differently than the others. Matthew, Mark, and Luke focus on what Jesus did. John pulls us back even further. He invites us into the story behind every other story. John does not begin in Bethlehem. He begins in eternity. “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God… In…

Everyone is waiting for something. Some of us are waiting for Christmas packages to arrive, final exams to be finished, or family to gather. Those are the simpler waits. Others are waiting for heavier things. A diagnosis. The return of a prodigal. A fresh start after a long season of disappointment. Waiting is part of life. But it is rarely easy. Advent is the season leading up to Christmas. It reminds us that the world once waited for Jesus to come, and that we are still waiting for him to make all things right. Advent teaches us how to wait with hope. A Different Kind of Christmas Story The Gospels are biographies of Jesus, and each tells the Christmas story from a different angle. Matthew begins with a genealogy because his audience is primarily Jewish. Mark skips the birth story altogether and starts with Jesus as an adult. Luke, the…

Have you ever noticed how far some people will go to squeeze every last bit of toothpaste out of the tube? They roll it, fold it, flatten it, and sometimes even step on it. That level of effort makes sense for toothpaste. Gratitude, on the other hand, does not always come out naturally. At least not for me. Grumbling does. Grumbling is effortless. Gratitude often feels more like eating kale. You know it’s good for you, but you have to work at it. Grumbling is like donuts. No effort required, and somehow you always have room for more. Yet Paul says that gratitude should not have to be squeezed out of us. When our lives are rooted in Christ, thankfulness should overflow. Gratitude is not something we force. It is the natural result of a life built in Christ. A Life That Overflows Paul writes: “So then, just as you…