Today is my 46th birthday and in honor of another trip around the sun, I thought I would share 46 lessons learned thus far in life. Enjoy, and I hope to see you this weekend. 1. Eat dessert first.2. Run towards something, not away.3. When something is hard, you’re on the cusp of a breakthrough.4. Feelings are too fickle to follow.5. The key to happiness is good relationships.6. Don’t take good par...  Read More

For many of us, we come to church each and every week, but still feel like we don’t know anyone. It is hard to connect with people on a Sunday morning. For others of us, we have friends outside of church, but no one to really talk about faith with. Having a group of friends that we can actually get to know and talk about our faith with can be valuable, especially if you have never tried it.  That ...  Read More

This Sunday, I will preach a really important message, and I hope you will be in worship to hear it. It matters deeply. I am currently preaching a series called Let’s Talk About… where I asked you about the topics, questions, or issues that you wish a church would address. I received a lot of great answers but none were as frequent as questions about sex, sexual ethic, sexual orientation, and gend...  Read More

I often get emails from parents whose kids suddenly express doubt in God or resistance to going to church. Teenagers often question the faith they were raised in, or even reject it all together. Parents of adult kids will regularly ask me how they can foster faith in their uninterested children and grandchildren. Many of us have a partner or spouse that doesn’t believe in God or has very little in...  Read More

Last Sunday night, Dave Merrill (our Executive Pastor) and his family lost their beloved dog, Java. He reflected on the life lessons he learned from Java. It really connected with me, and I bet it will connect with you as well. "On Sunday night, we said one last “good night” to our sweet Java girl. She was with Kara and I for 13 years, and she taught us a number of lessons on life. Here are a few:...  Read More

Are there questions or topics you wish the church would talk about, but that most churches just seem to ignore? Maybe it is a thorny theological question, like war in the Bible or heaven and hell. Maybe it is a hot button social or political issue - there are plenty of those. Maybe it is practical everyday life struggles, like mental health or parenting. Or, maybe it is a question that hits on the...  Read More