Someone once asked me if I played baseball growing up. The short answer: yes. The longer version? Let’s just say my dream of playing for the Cubs ended in 9th grade — thanks to an indoor tryout because the baseball field was covered in snow. The same tryout may have involved a bad throw shattering a window. While I don't completely blame Coach Birdrose for ending my dream of playing for the Cubs, he did make the right call cutting me from the team. It hurt at the time, but looking back, I get it. In sports, if you want to improve, the motivation is clear: win. Beat the competition. Get better or get cut. That’s how the system works. But when it comes to our spiritual lives, it’s completely different. In fact, one of the most powerful lessons I’ve learned is this: God’s grace is the best motivation for…
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What difference does Jesus actually make? What does it really mean to think and act like a Christian? To be like Jesus ... not just on Sundays or in a small group, but in the grind of everyday life? Malcolm X used to ask people coming out of church, “What difference does your Jesus make in your everyday life and in this world?” It’s a powerful question. And it’s one that the book of James answers head-on. James doesn’t give us a bunch of vague religious jargon. He asks pointed questions that hit us where we live. And in James 1, we find three big questions every Jesus-follower has to wrestle with: 1. How do I deal with people who offend me? James 1:19–21 says: “Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to become angry, because human anger does not produce the righteousness that God desires…”…
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Is it possible we've been looking at Christian academics all wrong. For many students, school feels like a blur of lectures, assignments, and exams. Sometimes boring. Occasionally stressful. Rarely inspiring. But when you begin following Jesus, it flips the script. Suddenly, education becomes something more than a GPA. It becomes stewardship. It’s about asking, “How am I developing the gifts God’s given me, including my mind?” One of the ways faith influences our academics is by reintroducing us to wonder. Say you’re in a general biology class, staring through a microscope at some mysterious little cell. What are you looking at? To be honest, I don’t know either. But I do know this: you’re looking at one of God’s many miracles. We need to help students understand: they’re not just killing time before practice or chasing a grade. They’re discovering something God created. That’s not boring. That’s breathtaking. But Christianity…
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In one of my business classes, I was talking with students about how business can be more than just a paycheck or a promotion. It can actually be a vehicle for doing God’s work in the world. I wanted them to hear this clearly: their faith doesn’t begin and end in chapel. It doesn’t clock in when class starts and clock out when the lecture ends. When you start to grasp what it really means to follow Jesus, something shifts. Your work becomes worship. One of the ways that happens? Purpose. Paul writes in Colossians 3:23, “Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for human masters.” In other words, your job isn’t just about a boss or a salary. It’s about serving God. Whether you’re a nurse comforting a patient, a businessperson making an honest deal, or a teacher inspiring a…
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When you move to Florida, you get asked several questions. Do you live here year-round? Are you retired? And ... Do you play pickleball? Actually, you only get asked the first two on a regular - but the third one is not uncommon. Do I live here year-round? Yes. Am I retired? No. Do I play pickleball? Yes, I am a pickleball player. At least, now I am. Before moving to Florida, I had the opportunity to play pickleball one time with our church staff. A few volunteers treated us to lunch and taught us the very basics of pickleball. We flailed around for a while, until the older ones (like me) got sweaty and sought out the shade. But as the old saying goes, "While in Rome, do as the Romans do" -- I decided one of the best ways to acclimate to Florida and meet new people was…
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