Courage and Cowardice
The worst riot in Detroit’s history broke out the summer of 1967: forty-three people were killed and over eleven hundred injured. As the violence …
Strength to face the day
Spiritual Judo
I reached my fitness high water mark at the age of twenty-four. I ran thirty miles a week, sweated three hundred pushups a day, and I brawled each …
Hearing God in Scripture
When I was twelve, my parents taught me to read a chapter of Proverbs a day. Proverbs has thirty-one chapters, so the day of the month determined …
Let’s Rethink the Way We Think
Circumstances, commitments, and surprises (the unpleasant kind) overwhelmed me the past six weeks. I had too much to do and too little time to do it. …
The Hard Edge of the Good News
Last week, a delay by God disappointed me. It also shocked me awake like smelling salts. For ten years, I’ve wanted (and waited) to write a book on …
Why Don’t We Think First? For a Change
A couple years ago I had an awful day in the middle of a horrible week in the midst of a bad month. A sniffle turned into post-nasal drip which turned …
Should We Ever Wrestle with God?
In the movie The Princess Bride, the evil genius Vizzini repeatedly (and inappropriately) exclaims, “Inconceivable.” His partner Inigo Montoyo finally …
The Hidden Secrets of Belief
Many years ago, I worked for a struggling company. Our architecture was outdated and sales revenue plummeted. Investments in new architecture meant …
Sinvitation: Ask Why
A man I know refuses to ask himself, “Why?” When sexual temptations entice, he grits his teeth and orders himself, “Resist!” When other people …
Why Don’t We Think First—For A Change
Several weeks ago I had an awful day in the middle of a horrible week in the midst of a bad month. A sniffle turned into post-nasal drip which turned …
Is It Ever Okay To Evangelize?
[To listen to a reading of this article, click here.] I was at Panera waiting for a friend when I overheard a three-way conversation at the next …
Why Do We Flee from A Sense Of Emptiness?
[To listen to a reading of this article, click here.] Last Sunday night was a dark night. I woke in the dark, thinking dark thoughts, unable to stop …