If My Dad Could See Us Now
My youngest brother got married this past weekend in Omaha, Nebraska. My wife and I had an amazing time (without kids, making it even more awesome) with my aunts, uncles, and cousins. As I sit down and think about my weekend I realize my brother’s wedding signifies the closing of an important chapter for our family, and I find myself emotional. When I was in second grade my dad was diagnosed with Leukemia and near the end of my third grade year he died. In a lot of ways I feel like I’ve spent my life hoping to make my ...
Jesus is Not Your Boyfriend
Jesus does not want to be your boyfriend. But, if you spend too much time around many churches today, you might think differently. In fact, I think this idea has become so ingrained in our churches, most of us don’t even recognize it’s there (or a problem). But, it’s a huge problem, and can be especially confusing to a man attending church for the first time. So, I’d like to share 3 ways the church unintentionally encourages this idea and how we can change it. 3 Ways the Church Makes Jesus Your Boyfriend 1. What Jesus looks like. Whenever you ...
Jack Bauer of the Bible- Part 2
24 has been one of my favorite t.v. shows over the last few years and if there's one dude in the Bible who resembles Jack Bauer- it's Elijah. His life plays out just like a summer blockbuster movie. If you think God did some cool stuff in the life of this one man in the first two weeks of this series- wait until you hear the final two weeks. Listen to the final two parts of our 4 week sermon series below to find out what happens next. This is a dude's dude! Epic (The Story of Elijah)- Week ...
Jack Bauer of the Bible- Part 1
24 has been one of my favorite t.v. shows over the last few years and if there's one dude in the Bible who resembles Jack Bauer- it's Elijah. His life plays out just like a summer blockbuster movie. I've loved learning about the God of Elijah and I hope you will also. Listen to the first two parts of our 4 week sermon series below to find out more. This is a dude's dude! Epic (The Story of Elijah)- Week 1 (Is God trustworthy?) Epic (The Story of Elijah)- Week 2 (How far will God go for His kids?) If you ...
3 Things Jesus Calls Us To
Thanks to Mike Carlisle for collaborating on this post. http://radicaltreeoflife.blogspot.com God asks His followers to commit completely to following Him and there's only one other type of relationship on earth that can be compared to that level of commitment: marriage. There are 3 things that Jesus calls us to that are similar to the commitment of marriage. (1 and 2 won't make sense until you understand 3.) 1. An Exclusive Relationship: You can't say you love your spouse and have a boyfriend/girlfriend on the side. In your commitment to marriage, your committing to love and pour all your affection into ...
15 Greatest Movie Mentors (and 3 Things that made them Great)
In any movie, if you're working towards winning a goal, there's always a great coach right next to you, pushing you along. Below are 15 of the greatest coaches from movies. I came up with 3 things that made these guys great and listed them at the bottom. Maybe you can come up with more. 15. Coach Gordon Bombay (Emilio Estevez) The Mighty Ducks https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZyVF1glhAfk 14. Coach Irv (John Candy): Cool Runnings http://youtu.be/aaov7DNICPg 13. Pai Mei: Kill Bill https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ETTsJggQl3I 12. Coach Herb Brooks (Kurt Russell): Miracle https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vwpTj_Z9v-c 11. Frankie Dunn (Clint Eastwood): Million Dollar Baby https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D-69fLBlLQY 10. Coach Norman Dale (Gene Hackman): Hoosiers https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CDJS9rFGCHE 9. Coach ...
15 Great Worship Songs to Start Your Day
Every once in a while I'll sit down and listen to some worship music. But, I'm always forgetting who plays the songs I like and I'll ask our church's worship leader, "Hey, who sings that song that goes, 'Aaaaamen....'?" He usually tries but has trouble narrowing it down from the terribly sung one line or word I give him. So, I figured I'd make my list and share it, in case you're also trying to find some songs to like. 1. Hillsong- Born is the King https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qf6OoAZbAQg 2. Gungor- Beautiful Things https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Is6weMrenls 3. Kristian Stanfill- Jesus Paid it All https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=brVIlXlJRkQ 4. ...
Video: Kindergarten Faith
How do we develop a passion to grow- in ourselves and our people? Think about the alternative! http://youtu.be/6bIf6QD4GFg
Emotional Bank Accounts Changed My Life: Part 1
Has anyone asked you for a favor and everything inside screams, “NOOoo!” Sometimes you ignore that and still say yes, but it almost makes you feel sick to your stomach (It's a struggle). I’ve thought a lot over the past few years about how this situation happens and tried to figure out how to prevent it. One day I read something that’s changed everything! It affects how I now view my relationships, my work, and really most every area of my life. It’s given me language to describe how to be a better leader, friend, co-worker, and family member. (I'll ...
Celebrating 1500 views- Here’s the top 5 most viewed posts!
We recently hit 1500 views for refuelblog. I thought it'd be fun to celebrate by sharing the top 5 most viewed posts thus far. #5. 4 Ways to Help Guys Love Groups (Here) We always like to say, "There's a lot of reasons people don't go to church and a lot of them are the church's fault." Well, I think there's a lot of reasons guys don't like groups and a lot of them are our fault. We can change that. #4. Is Your Church Better Than Starbucks (Here) I love Starbucks and loved everything it taught me about ...