Idealizing the Good Old Days
The Good Old Days I grew up in the quaint town of Jacobus, a borough of York, Pennsylvania. My summers were filled with riding bikes and climbing trees. I played tag in my friend Ben’s butcher shop, pretended to be a ghostbuster with my friend Matt and wondered how much it would hurt to pee on an electric fence with my friend Jay (when we weren’t building time machines). It’s easy to idealize the good old days. These memories seem simple, innocent, and bright compared to the complex world of gray hues I sometimes live in as an adult. However, the ...
Multicultural Lessons in School
Multicultural Lessons in School I'd like to share a story with you. But, first, I'd like you to know how much I love my kids' elementary school. They have an amazing principal, teachers, and students. I'd also like you to know that my son is a racial minority within his school. Being a white minority has created so many amazing opportunities for our family to discuss race and privilege. They've learned many valuable multicultural lessons in school. Sometimes these conversations are funny, like when we had to explain to our sons why they couldn't have a hairline like the rest ...
Living Life to the Full
My junior year of college was amazing in many ways. I lived in a great dorm with incredible friends. It felt like I was hitting the peak of the college experience. But, there was one area I was falling behind: dating. All of my close friends were dating. I don’t say that to be dramatic. Literally every one of my close friends was in a serious relationship for most of the year- except me. As evidence, here are a few snippets of my journal that year: 4.4.02 I think I am literally the last single junior guy. I can’t think ...
When You’ve Known Your Kids Longer than You Knew Your Dad
Yesterday, I watched my two oldest children walk towards their last day in third and first grade. To them it was just another last day of school as they excitedly told me they were, "smart, talented, good-looking and loved," which they do every morning before scurrying off to school like squirrels chasing the wind. But, for me, this day was different. Yesterday was May 25th, the anniversary of the day my dad died in 1990. Although I'm vaguely aware of this date every year, it holds a special significance this time around. The reason being that, as of this morning, I've ...
How Dropping Your Phone in the Toilet Makes You Reconsider Priorities
Yesterday, my wife had a great day. We've been working on our health as a family and I bought her a Fitbit. But, where there were rays of sunshine spilling into the windows of her life, there seemed to be a small grey rain cloud following me. My middle son had an indoor soccer tournament on Saturday, so I woke up in the middle of the night thinking about soccer. Having trouble sleeping, I decided to head downstairs to think. So, I grabbed my glasses and phone and went to the bathroom......and promptly dropped my phone in the toilet! I ...
The Spiritual Discipline of Chaos pt. 2
I've thought a lot about successful spiritual formation in the midst of of surviving parenthood. Last week I acknowledged the value of escaping to some far-off mountain to be with God, but immediately recoil at the very thought of fitting long periods of quiet into my often chaotic life. You can catch up on the first part of the post HERE. But, then I take a look at the life of Jesus. Would anyone dare describe his life by using words like tranquil, quiet, silent, or solitude? In the book of Mark, one of the first items on Jesus’ ministry agenda ...
Dear Christian, It’s OK to Pray for Patience
As a follower of Jesus there are many things I’m encouraged to pray for; my family, school, government, finances, marriage, kids, and also for qualities like strength, perseverance, and love. BUT, there is one thing many Christians think I should never pray for—patience. The story goes, a Christian should never pray for patience because God will then bring something difficult into their life requiring serious patience. For anyone who believes this, you may not realize it, but this theology is incredibly hurtful and inaccurate. I want you to know that you can, and should pray for patience. Now, maybe you’ve ...
We are All Trump
As the sun slowly rises on a country where president-elect Donald Trump now waits to receive his crown, I am thinking about the nation of Israel in the Bible. For many years the Israelites were ruled by God and directed by His prophets. A man named Samuel was God’s main voice to the nation for many years. But, as he aged he put his sons in charge and, “(t)hey turned aside after dishonest gain and accepted bribes and perverted justice” (1 Sam. 8:3). In reaction to this apparent injustice, the nation of Israel asked for a king like the other ...
The Work of God While Waiting
Remember back in middle school when people would pass notes to each other and ask, “Do you like me?”, followed by the instructions, “Circle YES or NO.” I remember being in 6th grade and thinking this girl named Erin, sitting on the other side of the room was cute so wrote just such a note. I can’t tell you why in the world writing a note in that moment seemed like the most logical course of action to discover the feelings a girl I liked. But, I wrote and carefully folded my note, writing her name on the front, and began the ...
Who Are Our Closest Friends?
As I held the phone my chest was tight, clenching my teeth waiting for my brother to respond. I tried explaining why I had not adequately planned nor expressed my desire to see him over a week-long beach vacation near his house. Reasons raced through my mind as I felt misunderstood and small. My brother exhaled slowly and deliberately, like he could feel the swell of a wave from deep within, and was determining whether he should let it roll and crash or try to push it back down to the dark. I could tell this was suddenly about more ...