I have preached 27 times in the last two weeks. 13 times at Cannon Beach.14 times at Word of Life.This morning my voice was pretty scratchy during the last two messages. I felt fine (more or less) but my voice was a bit worn out.I don’t mind all the preaching, in fact I enjoy it, but I confess that I’m glad I’m not preaching anywh…
I can still remember the first time I ever heard of Word of Life. While I was a student at Tennessee Temple University in Chattanooga forty years ago, a man named Jack Wyrtzen came through town for a chapel service. I don’t remember what he said, but I do remember his electrifying impact. That summer I ventured north with a group of friends f…
Last week I spoke at Cannon Beach Conference Center in Cannon Beach, Oregon. On Friday morning we had a question and answer session based on questions we had received from the audience. During the Q&A time, Evan Irwin served as moderator. This turned out to be one of the best sessions of the week.For the next several days I’m going to …
Late Wednesday afternoon Elijah Raymond Pritchard finally arrived. I really shouldn’t say “finally” because he actually was born on his due date. Vanessa is doing great and so is Eli. Mark is ecstatic. The grandparents are delighted. At the moment we’re in Oregon, then we’re in New York, but we’re making our way …
This afternoon we had the annual Sand Sculpture contest at Cannon Beach. Different families work together to produce the best sand sculpture using wet sand and anything else they can find. Brandon Beene and I served as the official judges for this grand event. This year’s entries included several turtles covered with seaweed, a very impressiv…
Sometimes you’ve got to change with the times.For the last two days I’ve been trying to figure out how to put my sermon notes on my iPad. I was greatly prodded in this direction by my friend Greg Kuehn, pastor of Sierra Bible Church, who told me how much I would like it. He uses an app called DocsToGo that let’s him import his not…
Two recent articles help us think about the growing impact of Christianity in China. The first article asks a simple question:Christianity: China’s Best Bet? Here’s a quote that shows both sides of the current dilemma:Some experts believe that China could soon be home to the largest Christian population in the world. And the Chinese go…
Recently I chatted with a friend who spends his days working in hospice care. Every day he helps families confront end-of-life issues. He listens a lot, answers questions, and in whatever way he can, tries to bring the love of Christ into those last few days of life. While we were talking, he matter-of-factly added this statement:"The way you…
Several times this week I was asked if I still ride my bicycle. It’s a fair question because I don’t write about it as much as I used to. But it’s also a timely question since I’ve been mostly off my bike for the last month.In the spring of 2005 I bought a Specialized Sequoia Elite from a big bike shop in downtown Chicago. I…
Several weeks ago I finished reading Bonhoeffer: Pastor, Martyr, Prophet, Spy by Eric Metaxas. My short review would be that this goes on the top shelf as the best book I’ve read this year. Two things struck me and stayed with me after I finished the book. First, Bonhoeffer saw much earlier than many others the evil that was in Adolph Hitler….