This past year I read/listened to the most books I’ve ever recorded in a single year. Being granted an eight week sabbatical AND listening to a lot of fiction while biking helped boost the number of books. I have found it helpful in the past to categorize books according to my level of recommendation. But…
Every year, Merriam-Webster releases its word of the year. They take into account the usage of words in search engines coupled with correlating current events to select their word. In 2022 the word was ‘gaslighting’ but now in 2023, the word of the year is ‘authentic’. That sounds super close to a core value of…
As I went to bed last night I was picking up on the nightly news that invasion was underway in Ukraine. When I woke up I watched a segment on CNN that troubled my heart. The newscaster stood at the side of a large screen map of Ukraine. It was a high tech affair. He…
Just a couple of years after ReCAST Church was getting off the ground over a decade ago, I was asked to join a group of community leaders about starting a food pantry in Mattawan that would be a collaboration of local churches and businesses. There were some small disconnected groups that were each serving several…
Most people have by now heard of the name John Chau. He was a young man who was killed last week, moments after arriving on an island occupied by a stone-age tribe that has been closed off to outside human contact. His plans to bring the gospel to that island were met by a…
I am almost recovered from the jetlag. The trip to Indonesia was a grueling haze of airplanes, airports, waiting, and restless attempts to sleep in a smaller space than my body is made to occupy. The trip was worth it. I cannot speak to any eternal results. I do not know how heaven will be…
In just a few days, Linda, Leah, and I will be flying out for Indonesia commissioned with the task of bringing encouragement to our missionaries. As the date of our travel is quickly arriving, I am thinking more and more about what it means to be an encouragement. And in my reflections, I have grown…
Last week, my wife and I bought plane tickets for us and our daughter to visit friends from our church who are missionaries in Indonesia. I am looking forward to this trip for many reasons, but the central reason comes from the relationship we have with these specific missionaries. They are friends who we have…