A regular stream of critical words has a way of taking the joy out of a marriage. A marriage in which a husband and wife regularly criticizes one another can feel like you are being nibbled to death by a duck. Sometimes we will level a criticism toward our spouse followed by the words, “I… Continue reading “I Was Just Kidding”
Category: Family
Five Lies You Shouldn’t Ever Believe
Many of us listen to lies that we really shouldn’t ever believe. The following are five examples. 1. You are not worth very much. This message may have had its beginning with a harsh father or an overpowering uncle. Years ago in Kansas City, I heard a father next door scream at his five-year-old. He… Continue reading Five Lies You Shouldn’t Ever Believe
On Refusing to Live a Hurried Life
I was a young minister. I had a few appointments and a few calls to return. I had a lunch meeting scheduled that day. For some reason, in those years, I thought that the busier I was, the more I was accomplishing. Decades later, as I think about my motives for this pace of ministry,… Continue reading On Refusing to Live a Hurried Life
5 Ways to Avoid Killing Your Marriage
1. Put some energy and intentionality into this marriage! Some people put more energy into creating their college basketball tournament bracket each year than they do their marriage. Being passive, while sitting in your emotional recliner, will bring a slow death to a marriage that could have been so much more. Think of what you… Continue reading 5 Ways to Avoid Killing Your Marriage
Baseball, Bikes, and One Warning From My Mother
I grew up in Southeast Dallas, the old Pleasant Grove area. During those years (1960’s), most of my memories of living in our neighborhood are good. I don’t remember my parents being concerned about crime in our neighborhood. Things were relatively calm in that neighborhood. In my memory, life was full. Baseball in the summer… Continue reading Baseball, Bikes, and One Warning From My Mother
Will You Make the First Move?
We had been seated in an outdoor area. The restaurant was very busy. We were waiting on our pizza. The people at the next table were inches away. They spoke no English (apparently). We certainly spoke no Italian (their language). Yet, it did not take an understanding of their language to know that they were… Continue reading Will You Make the First Move?
Don’t Stop Living Before You Die!
I knew a man who was alive and vibrant in his church in his 30s. He seemed to grow and connect with others in a meaningful way. However, something happened in his 40s. He found his recliner. That became his location for much of his life. Sitting and mindlessly watching hour after hour of television.… Continue reading Don’t Stop Living Before You Die!
When Men Leave Emotionally
What does a man do with pain? Many men simply leave. No, they don’t necessarily leave physically. Rather, they leave emotionally. I recently heard a friend of mine talk about this as he reflected upon a very difficult time in his life. I could identify. Many men have learned that the safest place to take one’s… Continue reading When Men Leave Emotionally
The Charmer, the Bully, and the Church
Some secrets need to be exposed. One of those secrets exists in families where the husband/father is a narcissistic man. During thirty six years of congregational ministry, I noticed that occasionally a certain kind of man would emerge who could be quite a problem for others. This person had a view of himself that was… Continue reading The Charmer, the Bully, and the Church
How Jesus Can Use a Family Just Like Yours
My dad grew up in a modest home, a son in a family who just got by. His family didn’t have much but neither did anyone else. Their family went to the Church of Christ in Granite, Oklahoma. W.D. Hockaday (1855 – 1944), one of the elders of their church, was very influential in his… Continue reading How Jesus Can Use a Family Just Like Yours