Front Row Christian

Can you be easily identified as a Christian by your fellow congregational members in the pew on Sunday morning? Most would answer yes to that question. The idea that there are some who might respond[…]

You ever said that out loud? What about under your breath? Better yet, have you ever thought it about a friend? I have been uttering things like that, both silently and audibly quite often lately.[…]

I heard that phrase uttered the other day and scoffed at it under my breath. I neither took it to heart nor did I truly think about the implications of what a short proclamation such[…]

Typically I view myself as a ‘decent’ dad. I’m no fool. I’m also not ignorant. When I hear people give me accolades as a ‘good dad’ I enjoy hearing it – that’s the self-absorbed ego-driven[…]

When the day is gone, and you sit listening to the world surrounding you, do you realize your flaws? I have been experiencing a recurring thought that urges me to simplify the life I lead.[…]

Algorithms today, especially those on social media, tend to be helpful, hurtful, and terrifying all in one tremendous vein. An algorithm is defined as a process or set of rules to be followed by calculations[…]

Our pastor recently announced that he was leaving ministry. He gave us all an explanation we could grasp and embrace along with a few weeks of sermons we could look forward to prior to his[…]

I had deliberated a bit on how best to approach my friend yesterday. I am cautious not to perpetuate an ‘anniversary’ of death, as I believe there is a risk, many times significant, that placing[…]

3 all day long tournaments filled with 4th grade girls from all over a 100 mile area. 17 regular season games with 34 sets therein. Admittedly I lost count, but somewhere in the neighborhood of[…]

But don’t get too heady just yet. As we drift from biblical literacy we relate less and less to the origins of the daily nomenclature we toss around. I’ll give you some examples. A drop[…]

According to Hoyle. Have you ever considered the context of what it really means to experience or learn of a “Miracle according to Hoyle” in true application? We must first ask, “Who is Hoyle” do[…]

Isn’t that what they claim? Well… There’s a few problems with that. First, I’m not sure I’m cultured enough to know whether that holds a shred of truth or not. Second, who is “they” anyway?[…]

How can I be dismal at Christmas time?  We celebrate the birth of the child of God who walked the Earth and became our savior this time of year.  We sing a little louder.  We[…]

That’s right.  I’ve fallen behind.  I have several blog posts started that are in various states of finish, but I don’t have any at the moment that I want to publish.  Most require more research[…]

It doesn’t matter what the tragedy is, we often pause to pray.  Do we not?  Do you ever wonder why that is? I don’t mean to be snarky, but why do we stop after we[…]

In the context of an average Christian, what does the word “walk” mean to you?  It ought to be your practices, your application, the means in which you carry yourself as you glorify Him. How[…]

Would you take that as a compliment in today’s culture?  Probably not.  Remove the idea that the assertion of negativity stemming from today’s culture and ask the question again.  While it might be the same[…]

I was hoping this nonsense would end, but no such luck. In fact, in full disclosure, the only way this stops is when we either tire of it due to shear volume or we become[…]

And I’ve never been more ashamed in my life. It had been a long day.  I’d been waging a war with a monster bureaucracy a good portion of the day.  It would take an entire[…]

Yup.  I’m circling back on some things from nearly a year ago.  …Which is good.  We need to reflect.  If I were truly Godly, when compelled to make a statement to what I experience, a[…]

I have friends getting married today.  Dear friends.  They stem from different back grounds with different environments in which they were raised.  One a long time believer, another born again more recently.  The way they[…]

THE GOOD I would like for you to watch this video.  Listen to the lyrics and pay close attention to the little bits of strain on each band member. What did you think?  Kind of[…]

We all know the Apostle Paul wrote the letters to the Corinthians.  I was reading through 1st Corinthians and noticed Paul was correcting the church on many things.  MANY things.  In chapter 10, Paul was reminding[…]

I’ve been a reading a lot of C.S. Lewis in recent months.  I was drawn initially for the combination of literary complexity and the Christian apologetics.  I found myself staying mostly for the pain.  At[…]

I had a person extol the virtues of abortion to me a short time ago while showing tremendous aberration towards the holocaust. I’ll admit freely I tricked them deliberately by asking them their opinion on[…]

I experienced something that I never assumed possible.  Troubles with a trusted brother.  You know.  The kind you read about or hear about, but also the kind you never expect to actually happen to you[…]

I was dealt a considerable blow today. Have you ever had something happen to you that was really hard to wrap your mind around?  As if each time the fog lifted on the matter, you[…]

“Oh man…  It was only a matter of time after he said he was studying Latin.  I suppose I can look forward to all kinds of that jazz for the next six months in his[…]

Yup…  You guessed it.  Here I was all high and mighty about my hard work on the Love Dare…  Yuppers, I’d undertaken and completed the whole ditty on time in 40 days, and the residual[…]

How often do you hear that phrase or something similar?  I can’t walk ten feet without hearing somebody say it.  Let’s take this in context too by the way.  When a phrase like “God never[…]

“It’s not our job to toughen our children up to face a cruel and heartless world.  It’s our job to raise children who will make the world a little less cruel and heartless.”  I ran[…]

Do you ever get like that?  You and I know…  WE KNOW, God loves us and we don’t have any reason to get bummed.  But, life gets in the way.  Life grinds us down to[…]

If you think about this there are some pretty serious ramifications at play here and we’re gingerly skipping past too many of them without a care in the world.  I’ve been studying Hippocrates diligently for[…]

Where have I heard that before?  It became popular on a book cover and then used widely on a campaign trail not so long ago.  It’s a catchy little phrase and when used in the[…]

Are they?  I had a really great discussion the other day with a delivery driver that came to my shop.  He noticed I was listening to some Christian Apologetic lectures in the back ground and[…]

  SPOILER…  I survived the Love Dare.  So did my wife.  So did our marriage.  At this time, we must pause our program for station identification and thank our show’s sponsors, The Love Dare, Kirk Cameron,[…]

HALF WAY THERE, he said with a resounding sense of pride.  If the Love Dare was a week, this would be hump day…  😉  You know all about Kirk Cameron, the movie “Fireproof” and my[…]

As I laid out in the first portion of this four part blog series, I had enjoyed watching the movie “Fireproof” with Kirk Cameron a few years back, bought the DVD, but hadn’t watched it[…]

I’m not Catholic, but I’ve always enjoyed the idea of Lent.  If for nothing else I like the idea of giving something up in sacrifice or to simply pay daily devotional in a focused method. […]

Haven’t they?  Seriously.  What tops your list of gripes about today’s youth?  They want it all given to them.  They don’t want to work.  They don’t respect people.  They’re addicted to their phones and social[…]

I’ve been fortunate to have a handful by the way, and they’ve forever altered the quality and content of my life. What is a mentor you ask?  Dictionary.com explains this in noun form as “an[…]

Do you?  I doubt it.  I know I don’t nearly as often as I should.  In order for me to put this in perspective for you, let me lead you through this a bit. I[…]

And more importantly what to do when you stumble across it?  Well, the fact is, and I don’t mean to start this blog entry by punching you in the face, but if you are wondering[…]

Awakening from the Big Sleep I write this blog as a confession to you today.  If you read this blog at all you can see the swing in my emotion and the method in which[…]

Yeah, I love a provocative title.  You know this by now.  Over half the time I contradict in the first paragraph that which I have titled the blog entry, so this should come as no[…]

A Tale of Two Cities and One Sweet Little Girl… Today’s entry will be a bit different and also very personal to me… My dad approached me to take a few moments and write a[…]

“I need to be alone. I need to ponder my shame and my despair in seclusion; I need the sunshine and the paving stones of the streets without companions, without conversation, face to face with[…]

Do you? Some time ago I was visiting with a friend of mine and he kept telling me how much alike I was to a friend of his on facebook.  He kept referring to both[…]

Wrestle tuna nearly half my size, and fend off hungry sharks with a knife just barely big enough to spread butter on a bagel.  That’s right.  I want to risk plenty, and for what?  The[…]

I’m a football fan.  I played football when I was little and started JV the first two years in high school and started Varsity as a junior and senior.  I was what I’d describe as[…]

Yes, as a matter of fact I believe it can be used as an example of what we seem to miss all too often when hoping, praying, and working to fill the pews…  Now, before[…]

Do you remember the blog entry prior when I mentioned how I’d driven past THAT bag of trash a half dozen times and never bothered to pick it up.  Remember how the trash bag eventually[…]

I saw that bag of trash along the road near the same intersection I turn at every morning.  …And I drove right by it.  It might not seem like much, and maybe you think I’m[…]

Everybody who has a heartbeat wants to make an impact on this.  Don’t we?  We hurt and we’re sorrowful.  We want to move forward, but more apropos, we want to have done something to stop[…]

How often do you hear that in a day’s time?  I notice it often. “Hey, kudos on your spelling test son.  Awesome!” “Did you see the new Batman movie?  It was awesome.” “Wow, I love[…]

I didn’t.  Rest assured I do now.  It’s a great story too, so buckle in for a quick ride. Some of you are movie buffs.  Me too.  I love film.  I especially respond to dramas,[…]

Credo ut intelligam – Latin for “I believe so that I may understand” can be considered a mouthful.  If you do some searching around you’ll end up settling on Augustine of Hippo.  Another, albeit longer,[…]

Nobody mentioned that one to me before I entered into it. OK, that’s not true, and while wifey and I were the beneficiaries of some really great pastoral guidance, I’m not sure a person can[…]

Conflict…  I experienced that yesterday.  I suppose you’d define conflict for my purposes as a clash between two things.  I was at odds within a situation our family has experienced.  I’m at odds no longer.[…]

I stumbled across a video link on Kevin Sorbo’s facebook page the other day.  I typically don’t stop to watch every video I happen to notice.  If I did, I’d get absolutely nothing else done.[…]

I dig this song.  Acoustic ballads are typically an easy relate anyway.  There’s very little clutter and by virtue of being a ballad, there is a message inside the bottle.  When looking into why Eddie[…]

I make them.  Often.  Do you? I would almost state to you all that I fall into the category of having an “assumption battle” more often than I’d like to admit.  I didn’t choose those[…]

If she’d lived to be 8 years of age, we’d have celebrated it today.  I look back through pictures of her older sister to that time and age and see how she matured, looked, and[…]

I’ve had my eye on several support groups now for quite a while.  I’ll be very forthcoming with you about it.  There are things I’d very much like to change for the positive about my[…]

Relax.  I wasn’t feeling transgendered.  Rather, as a 43yr old white American male, I was actually self identifying as a teenage Scandinavian girl.  …An early teenage girl.  …Or at least that’s the intellect I’m boasting[…]

Yeah, I said that.  We’re headed into some really interesting and revolutionary times.  There are some who resist things like technology on face value, much based on fear.  There are fuddy duddies who just resist change.[…]

Is that a silly thing to ask or what?  I’m hoping that at some point a fog machine is added to the 5 piece rock and roll band we have at church each morning.  In[…]

The blog title is crap, I know.  …And cliche.  But you’re here, so let’s delve in. 1 – Cinematically speaking, this series is very well done. The production is on point with this series.  The[…]

That’s what a kid said to me on Easter Sunday.  It may not seem like much to most of you, so let me paint you a picture.  This kid isn’t parented often or well.  He’s[…]

Ever heard of a band called “Broken Bells” by chance?  I was listening to a really snappy tune from them the other day and was digging on some dark but interesting lyrics.  If you’re not[…]

Who woulda thunk it?  I recently happened across a piece on patheos.com where a self proclaimed millennial gave us the key to the kingdom as he saw it…  I found it refreshing.  I wrote a[…]

…And #1 is?  Well, let’s wait on that for just a moment. Recently as I was surfing the net, I noticed many friends were sharing around the same article.  It kept popping up in various[…]

My response you ask?  “Only 21?” I recently read an article from Chad Howse titled “21 Things Modern Men Need to Stop Doing” and it got me thinking.  I need to warn you up front,[…]

That sounds pretty pathetic doesn’t it?  What kind of heathens comprise this generation?  Are they truly the ever-texting Godless mongrels that mark the end of days? Not so fast…  Before we go ahead and step right[…]

Wanna bet?  How about you attempt to say that again, as I sit here pulling your front teeth out of my knuckles? That’s not the response I’m supposed to have is it?  I have to[…]

Honestly people.  I’m getting sick and tired of that mantra that precedes some blather about “if you don’t copy and paste this nonsense, you’ll ________________…”  Facebook is great for this.  A large part of me[…]

Actually, that’s a silly blog title.  There is no season – Roe v. Wade says you can murder all year long.  No limits.  No fees.  No blackout dates.  It almost sounds like a commercial for[…]

“At least we dig each other…”  You know that tune?  I do.  It is one of my very favorites.  I love Incubus and have for a number of years.  My brother was listening to this[…]

We don’t actually hear people say that often out loud, but the fact is that it happens daily.  We manage to do it on a personal level with silly facebook memes and pics with text[…]

Mira past on… On Christmas Eve, my wife and I loaded our family up in the car, and we left the farm to travel to all the relative’s and share Christmas with them.  We had[…]

I’ve heard them all.  My wife happened across this article and shared it with me.  Believe me, as an adoptive parent, I’ve experienced just about every cliche you can think of.  Some are silly.  Some[…]

Ok, sorry…  “Graphic Novel” for you enthusiasts. I was never a comic book guy.  In the area I grew up, there simply wasn’t access to them.  The newsstand at the local grocery had a few,[…]

God sends you a message… The election period was rough.  People were and still are behaving stupidly.  I was labeled a racist for no more than simply being light skinned.  I was labeled a bully[…]

That kind of troubled me.  In fact, the longer I thought about it, the more bothered I became.  I wasn’t really sure how to balance it either.  Just how worked up should I get over[…]

How often do you hear that one?  I’m running across it from time to time – more often than I’d like actually.  Nobody with two brain cells to rub together is buying that crock, right?[…]

Yes. The problem is simple.  We often don’t understand it, or can’t talk about it.  Well, actually that begs a question: Can’t or Won’t? What do you think when people ask why somebody young, or[…]

It’s my blog.  I can write about anything I want.  I can tackle controversial subjects.  I can poke the bear in the eye with a metaphorical stick.  I can also set down here and convey[…]

This is a big one folks.  It really is.  There are many who cannot balance politics and religion.  More importantly, they don’t understand that there are absolutely essential times when both should be completely separated,[…]

I’ll bet you don’t see that one much…  Ha!  Probably because we’re busy asking questions of Abby like why our husbands don’t look at us the way they used to, or which stroller is best[…]

Yeah, that was pretty heavy handed.  In fact, of my six readers, I just lost four of you.  But, that’s ok.  I can’t force you to the reality of abortion.  If there was such a[…]

I didn’t dig it.  Wifey poo was on call and I understand fully that she doesn’t want to zip from the front row to the back and out the doors to take a call and[…]

A good friend of mine and I were talking yesterday and just as I was thinking it he mentions, “Have you noticed how negative Facebook and social media have become?”   There’s a couple of[…]

I’m no different than anyone else in that today is a tough day. It’s hard for a lot of reasons, really. It was a couple years ago I had a bunch of little girls running[…]

Translated from the Greek, “Lord, have mercy” Kyrie Eleison – \ˈkir-ē-ˌā-ə-ˈlā-(ə-) I remember listening to the song with this title as a kid over and over and over. I remember not having a single friend with any idea what[…]

Yes, I’m a front row Christian.  Yes, I like my La-Z-Boy recliner.  Yes, I like naps.  Oh, whoops… http://babylonbee.com/news/church-unveils-new-full-body-massage-pews/ I was alerted to the article above by my Pastor, Steve, recently.  I found it humorous.[…]

#bluelivesmatter #blacklivesmatter Sure they do.  But what about #alllivesmatter?  I saw this facebook meme running around the other day and it was one of the few I gave more than a half second to for[…]

If your reaction to my blog subject line was “Finally, somebody gets me” then you’re set for disappointment.  There seems to be a steady stream of this kind of false thought running through the Christian[…]

I have been delving deeper into college choices for our children.  While they are very young, the education and the philosophy are supremely important in order to hone my kid’s swords.  …Or dull them.  Thus, the[…]

Wait a minute…  Maybe let’s not.  Sounded almost militant didn’t it? OK, that’s a poor way to start when putting thoughts to paper, but the fact is, I struggle with this stuff.  What are we[…]

…And you guessed it.  I didn’t like it one bit.  My wife was ‘on call’ that weekend and since we were traveling to family on Easter Sunday, we wanted to catch a Good Friday service.[…]

Hallelujah – Hebrew for “Glory to the Lord” – After discussion with my wife and others I decided to revisit the subject of “Hallelujah” made famous by Leonard Cohen’s writing, and timeless by Jeff Buckley’s version of[…]