Training For Something Greater
This post is a follow-up to Standing Together As One. In Philippians 2:1-2, Paul encourages his friends in Philippi to remain united with each other by appealing to the unity they enjoy with Christ. “Therefore if you have any encouragement from being united with Christ, if any comfort from his love, if any common sharing in [...]
Today I had the honor of serving as “Pastor of the Day” for the Texas House of Representatives. My responsibilities included saying an opening prayer at today’s legislative session. (This was actually my only responsibility.) Here’s an early version of the prayer I wrote for the occasion. (If you’re not from Texas some of the [...]
Last week I taught three classes at the Pepperdine Lectures about what churches can learn from CrossFit. Most of the material was reverse engineered from Train for Something Greater (Now in paperback!), which is primarily written for CrossFitters who want to apply principles of physical training to the pursuit of spiritual fitness. Here are nine [...]
I don’t like scary movies. Never have. When I was a kid, I went to the movies with a friend and his mother took us to see Poltergeist (Not cool!). I’ve been afraid of scary movies—and clowns—ever since. I am, however, fascinated by zombies. I’ve written about this fascination before. It started with The Walking [...]
Paul writes the letter we call Philippians from prison. While there is some scholarly debate about whether he’s in prison in Rome or Ephesus or somewhere else, I’m going to assume he’s in Rome, because it makes for a better story. And I never let the facts get in the way of good story. Where [...]
Several weeks ago, I watched Survive and Advance on ESPN. It’s a documentary about how the North Carolina State Wolfpack defied the the odds to beat the University of Houston Cougars (Phi Slamma Jamma) for the 1983 NCAA National Championship in basketball. Even if you’re not a huge college basketball fan, you likely recognize the [...]
Part One: A Different Kind of Friendship Part Two: The Battle of Chicken Joe’s Mohawk In future posts, we’ll dig into the details of what Paul SAYS in his letter to his friends in Philippi. In this post, let’s focus what he’s DOING by writing the letter in the first place. What he’s doing is [...]
Part One: A Different Kind of Friendship Paul is in prison and his friends in Philippi send Epaphroditus, along with some money, to help Paul in his time of need. Epaphroditus also brings Paul news about how the church in Philippi is doing. Based on what Paul says in Philippians, we can get a pretty [...]
“I thank my God every time I remember you. In all my prayers for all of you, I always pray with joy because of your partnership in the gospel from the first day until now, being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until [...]
Once upon a time there was a mother hen who had a brood of chicks. They lived in a large barnyard surrounded by a field. Her chicks were cute, cuddly, and LOUD. Their constant peeping could always be heard, no matter where you were in the barnyard. Their mother thought of them as her “precious [...]
Telling Stories, Asking Questions, Learning Lessons
