Melissa is Cancer Free (but that is not what makes God good)

Thursday we received Melissa’s post-surgical pathology report. Monday’s surgery had come after four long months of chemotherapy. We we were informed that the cancerous tumor removed from her breast was tiny, the margins around it were clear and the removed lymph nodes were clear as well. Melissa is not yet through this journey but she

Going “Old School!”

(The Comeback of American Sunday School)   After decades of decline, I believe Sunday School may be poised for a Post-COVID comeback.  It would be an old thing that became the latest new thing; ecclesiastical Chuck Taylor Converse All-Stars.  Mind you, this would not be a “cut and paste” of Sunday School circa 1970, but

Quite the Opposite Altogether

I often think about how my grandchildren will one day remember me. It will not be as an old man uninterested in their lives. It will not be as a sedentary man lacking energy to engage. It will not be as a grumpy man they cannot approach. I was tubing on the lake with my

A Dozen and One Pre-Christmas Hacks (2022 Edition)

We all know Christmas events and family gatherings can be stressful.  Especially this year. I get it.  Drama wrapped in beautiful paper and adorned with a bow is still drama. But I want to suggest that they don’t have to be terrible.  In fact, they can be pretty good…even in a pandemic! Like anything else in

Facing Those Who Disappoint (during the holidays)

The holiday season is almost upon us!  Again. Some of you are rejoicing!  Some are not. It is 100% certain that you will be dealing with people who have disappointed you during this holiday season.  When we are around people who have disappointed us in one way or the other, a myriad of emotions can

You Don’t Hear Fathers Talk About This Much

You don’t hear father’s talk about this much. This is an excerpt from my latest book: Re-Conversion (The “God is Good” Story) (Sumner, Illinois, circa 1996) Sometime in late 1992, I attended a seminar on how to do ministry with Senior Adults held in Peoria, Illinois. There was this feeble, little man who inched up

Early Marriage Tactical Error #2

(Louisville, Illinois circa 1985) I had landed a job teaching and coaching at the Jr. High School of North Clay Unit 25 immediately upon my graduation from Southern Illinois University at Carbondale.  I taught seventh and eighth grade American history and coached baseball and basketball.  My teaching job paid about $12,000 each and every year

The Discipline of the Lord (Comes Swiftly and from the Left Side)

The Discipline of the Lord (Fort Worth, Texas circa 1969) Dad is a southpaw.  There are two files in my memory that verify this fact.  One concerns the fact I could never use his baseball glove.  I could catch with it but I always threw like a girl.  (These days girls throw really well, so

What Is A “Tween” and Why Should They Matter To Your Church? (by Amanda Cates)

What Is A “Tween” and Why Should They Matter To Your Church? It’s a Sunday morning and I couldn’t wait to get to work! I knew that all my elementary kids were going to love the Large Group set we designed for the month, and that we had finally found worship music that would engage

Love on the Wall (and Scissors in the Drawer)

I had a wonderful neighbor and a parishioner in my seminary years. She was a 90 year old widow who lived across the street from the parsonage. She often invited The House of Bishop to her larger family events and we were grateful. For the three years I served that student appointment in Georgia, she