(I had the opportunity to speak in chapel at George Fox University as part of Quaker Focus Week, on November 4, 2014) Have you ever had a recurring nightmare? I had one for years as a kid, and I hated it. Every time, I’d be walking …
Read MoreA Growing Community
(Message given at Newberg Friends Church on September 14, 2014) “A growing community.” What does that look like? Why is this an important part of our vision for our church? It’s impossible for me to underestimate how important community and friendships and relationships have meant …
Read MoreOur Vision Statement
(Message given at Newberg Friends Church on September 7, 2014) My dad would sometimes, out of the blue, say: “Brylcreem: a little dab’ll do ya!” I don’t really know why, other than I know he heard that slogan a lot listening to the Lone Ranger …
Read MoreConsistent and Faithful
(Message given at Newberg Friends Church on August 17, 2014) Matt. 5:33-37 My wife Elaine has been watching TED talks. She’s working her way through the list of the all-time most watched TED talks. Mostly that’s a cool thing, because she’s learning a lot and …
Read MoreSexuality…in Context
(Message given at Newberg Friends Church, August 10, 2014) We’re in this series on the sermon on the mount, and today’s section has adultery, sexuality, gouging your eyes out, divorce…really not many places you can go wrong there, right? Whose bright idea was this series anyway? If I …
Read MoreMy Responsibility
(Message given at Newberg Friends Church on August 3, 2014) I made this great pitch two weeks ago about how great it was going to be to study the teaching of Jesus in the sermon on the mount. Then Elizabeth did a great job last …
Read MoreDeep Simplicity
(Message given at Newberg Friends Church on May 25, 2014) 1 John is a frustrating book if you are very precise and want to lock things down. Throughout the book, you have these binary statements, these statements that put two things into a relationship where …
Read MoreA Literal Metaphor?
(Message given at Newberg Friends Church on May 11, 2014) If you’ve been around me very long, you know I’m a guy who loves a metaphor. Metaphors fit me like a glove. (See what I did there?) Actually all the English majors are going, “Dude, …
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