Alabama lost the Sugar Bowl last night to Oklahoma and my Facebook feed blew up with people either bragging or griping or being defensive toward others, as though they were the ones on the field playing the game. When Auburn beat Alabama over a month ago, Christians who were Bama fans in our state were… Continue Reading
Category Archives: Fun
When Football Becomes Idolatry: Dead Trees at Auburn’s Toomer’s Corner
Wow. Again, wow. It just got real in the state of Alabama. Harvey Updike, 62, from Dadeville, AL was arrested early this morning for poisoning the famous oak trees at Toomer's Corner in Auburn, AL. These trees are very important to fans of Auburn University and they are traditionally rolled with toilet paper after big… Continue Reading
The High Holy Days of the American Experience
With the emergence of Black Friday as an unofficial American holiday (holy day), I have been giving some thought to the purpose of holidays in the experience of a culture/people. The word “holiday” comes from the concept of a “holy day,” or a day of commemoration, celebration, or observance. Every religion has its holy days… Continue Reading
Camping at Oak Mountain
Last weekend, my family and I went camping up at Oak Mountain near Birmingham. We had a great time. Here are a few pictures. … Continue Reading
Vote for Me in a March Madness Blog Contest
Okay, a bit of shameless promotion here. Every year, SBCVoices.com has a March Madness tournament to vote for the top blogs amongst Southern Baptist bloggers. Out of over 500 Southern Baptist blogs, I have qualified each year and even made the Sweet 16 a couple of years ago. I am in the South Region with… Continue Reading
Resurrection Day, Gardening With the Kids, and Enjoying God’s Beauty
We just finished an amazing weekend of worship, reflection on the Death, Burial, and Resurrection of Christ, spending time with family, and looking toward the future. We look backward at what Christ has done so that we can more clearly see our present and so that we can look ahead to the hope that He… Continue Reading
Back From SF, Blog (March) Madness
Ashtyn and I returned from SF last night. We had a great time! I've got some great pictures and thoughts from the time that we spent together. We also got some insight into what God is doing in the Bay Area through the people that we reconnected with. More on that next week. The whole… Continue Reading
If You’re Going To San Francisco . . .
My daughter, Ashtyn, was born 10 years ago this May. I cannot believe that the time has gone by so fast. It seems like just yesterday that I was holding her in one hand while giving her a bath under the faucet in our kitchen sink. When she was first born, she would cry with… Continue Reading
It’s the Most Wonderful Week of theYear!!!
My favorite week of the year started yesterday (between Christmas and New Year's). We have family visitng, presents are everywhere, we just ate brunch a little while ago, and we just had a foosball tournament with the new foosball table. Peyton, my 7 year old son, is beating everyone like 21-3. He is ridiculous. Caelan… Continue Reading
Missional Holidays, Part 2
Eugene Peterson says that it is the role of the pastor to keep the community attentive to God. In speaking of community here, I think that he means the church. He is right and I take that role very seriously, however imperfectly I carry it out. But, I also think that it is the role of… Continue Reading