News & Updates

If I told you I was super-excited about Sunday’s message, would you think that was out of the ordinary for me? Would it sound like “blah, blah, blah” from the pastor’s Friday “blah, blah, blah” email? But what if, on Sunday, we were really getting down to the heart of the matter? What matters? The church. Jesus. Good news. “Sounds like blah, blah, blah to me, Pastor.” But most churches these days are stuck. There must be a reason why…

Once upon a time, there was a colorless tiger. All his shades were greys, blacks and whites—so much so, that he seemed like something out of an old black and white movie. His lack of color had made him so famous that the world’s greatest painters came to his zoo to try to put some color on him. None of them succeeded, as the colors would always just drip down off his fur. Then along came Van Cough the crazy painter.…

When you buy a jumbo all-beef hot dog at the Braves game for $6.50, and the thing is gone in three bites—you’re left with mustard on your face wondering, “Is that all there is? There must be more!” Remember when the last fireworks rocket had lit up Cinderella’s castle at Disney World and you paid $130 bucks to get in the gates? At this point, all you had left, besides a thimble full of sanity, is a throbbing headache. Don’t…

The tag on the side of the displayed recliner read, “Imitation Vinyl.” I thought to myself, “This is either a really, really good recliner or not.” There are no flowery words for something that is fake, phony, bogus or a sham. Those who are fakers have spurious titles like charlatan, counterfeit, fraud, imposter, or quack. I’m not a huge fan of the imitation or fake stuff. Fake news blurs lines of authenticity. You should probably knock it off when considering…

Because of Cobb County Schools’ Fall break this week, I was able to get away for a few days with the fam. We’ve been privileged to stay high atop a gorgeous mountain in Mineral Bluff, Ga. The air has been cooler here. The early morning coffee is richer. The morning conversations with the kids in the hot tub have been spectacular and funny. My connection to God at this altitude is good too. My journal entries are memorable. There’s a…

I watch Remember the Titans at least once a year. It was most definitely Denzel Washington’s best work. You can filter much of life through the lessons presented in this epic movie. In fact, I recommended RTT again this week to our staff. They moaned with the pain that comes from the lead pastor’s regular and relentless repetition. Now before September 23, 2000 (the illustrious date of RTT’s release), I was fully committed to another film: Honey, I Shrunk the…

I take a probiotic pill every morning that contains 30 billion strains of good bacteria. They say if you can keep your gut in good shape, the health of your body can follow more readily. I don’t really know if that’s true, but I do like using the word gut. I do six, one-minute planks and 60 push-ups every day—most days. They say if you can keep your core strength in decent shape, you will eliminate other whole-body problems later.…

My 10-year-old niece is a lot like my wife. My niece plays games like “organize the closet” and “make a grocery list.” She loves when everything is in place and organized. One day she overheard us talking about our weekly menu. On our refrigerator we list out every meal for every day that week. Each meal type has its own color: green for breakfast, red for lunch, blue for dinner. Sometimes we even write what snack we can have that…

On a weekly basis—it becomes time to cut the grass. On an almost daily basis, it becomes time for our kids to take a bath. That sagging mid-section beckons for the time to come for exercise and diet. Sometimes it’s just time. Our over-the-oven microwave quit working. It sat idle for several months. I finally took the piece of junk out. For several more months, that ugly, empty space stared defiantly at me. That space and my wife reminded me…