Anyone who knows me knows that I love everything about coffee, from roasting to drinking. I have roasted my own coffee beans for about 20 years. Even so, a very simple but profound truth came to mind while roasting this past Saturday. When I finish roasting, I take the round cage full of beans and…
Category: Trials
Keller: “Everything is Going to Be Alright”
Timothy Keller, founding pastor of Redeemer Presbyterian Church in NYC, has stage four Pancreatic cancer. That’s not news—he’s been talking about it for some time. He has also been candid that he’s aware his time left here is limited. I greatly appreciate his honest hope in the midst of suffering and the reality of physical…
Numbness: When You Find Yourself on the Road to Nowhere
Have you ever been so overwhelmed that you just felt numb? Believe it or not, I think sometimes it’s normal. The question is how you process it in a healthy way so that you don’t spiral out of control before the feeling comes back. I want to tell you about my most recent journey into spiritual and emotional numbness and suggest a couple of ways to not only survive, but thrive.
Gravel Roads Get You There, Too
My Dad was born and raised in the little, country town of Mendenhall, Mississippi. When I was growing up, we spent nearly every Saturday down there visiting my grandparents, along with all the aunts, uncles, and cousins who were scattered along highway 13. Most of my memories include either walking or riding down all the…
Whiplash From Life’s Hairpin Turns
As I write this, my Dad lay in ICU at Baptist Hospital in Jackson with a very slim chance of recovery, medically speaking. On Wednesday he was set to go home today (Friday) but took a terrible turn sometime during that night. In an instant, everything changed. That’s the way life is, isn’t it? Instantaneous…
But God: The Foundational Truth
Last week, I wrote about the amazing chapter 2 of Paul’s letter to the Ephesians, where he reminds them of God’s amazing power to change the course of life through His everlasting mercy. I mentioned that the recent experience of my Dad’s very serious illness from which he is currently recovering reminded me of his…