It’s Not Your Birthday Cake
When you realize the birthday cake is for Jesus and not you… The singing hadn’t even finished. The cake was still intact. And my son was already done with his head on the table, and arms folded in. No drama… just pure, honest exhaustion. I keep coming back to this photo because it feels familiar…
I Saw God on the Train
I saw God on the train and pretended I didn’t.But the only open seat was the row He was sitting in.I sat down quietly hoping he wouldn’t noticeBut he turned slowly, eyes sharp and focused“Oh, why do you bother turning your face?Are you hiding from me, my son?” I said, “Oh, God, not me I…
Numbered, Weighed, Divided
There’s a strange thing that happens in the wilderness. You can feel completely safe, totally at ease, right up until the moment you realize how wrong you were. I’ve had trips like that. One in particular still sits in my memory. We were hiking a stretch of trail that followed a ridge above a small…
The Long Winter of Jehoiachin
Living in upstate New York long enough, you know what’s coming. That edge in the air. The way the wind starts to whisper through the trees differently. The daylight shrinking just a little earlier each evening. You can feel winter getting ready to settle in. Last year at this time, my family and I were…
Blood in Our Public Square: The Death of Charlie Kirk
I was sitting in my kitchen following a dinner recipe on my phone when I saw the news. A man with a microphone, standing in front of college students, shot mid-sentence. For a moment I just stared at the words on the screen, the way you stare at something your mind doesn’t quite want to…
Forward To The Far Horizon
Weddings have a way of slowing time. Everyone else was talking, laughing, and toasting, but I found myself crouched low, watching my son crawl across the hardwood floor. The sunlight poured through the curtains, throwing long shadows of a man bent low and a boy moving forward. And in that moment, I wasn’t thinking about…
Why I Hate My Birthday
I hate my birthday. Not in the shallow “I’m getting old” way, but in the hollow way where the day feels like it should be full, but it isn’t. My brother and I were twins. For as long as I can remember, this day was ours. We blew out candles together. We fought over who…
When the Room Goes Quiet
The chapel was quiet except for the hum of the ceiling fans and the sound of the pines outside the window. A room full of young men, heads bowed, shoulders pressed close together. I stood at the podium, a Bible in front of me, trying to feel the weight of the moment. I don’t preach…
Somewhere to Sleep
Life’s busy right now. Camp is in full swing. I wake up thinking about schedules and staffing and emails I haven’t sent. The days are long, the work is constant, and honestly, I’ve felt the weight of missing time with my son. I don’t get many slow moments with him lately. Not like I used…
The Boy Who Lit The Lantern
It’s the middle of the night in Boston, April 18, 1775. The city is quiet, but not peaceful. Something big is coming. The British army is getting ready to move. They’ve been watching, planning, preparing to crush the growing rebellion. If they can strike fast—if they can catch the leaders of the colonies off guard—it’s…
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