An Excellent Theology of Church

Caleb is lives on Vancouver Island....salmon, bald eagles and whales. I am friends with his family. Caleb has some really good thoughts about what church is all about. And that shouldn't be a surprise seeing the salmon he is holding! Here is a quote from a letter his parents sent out recently.

For home school literature, Caleb is reading through the New Testament. Upon coming to the Sermon on the Mount, he wanted to conduct a little experiment in our darkened bathroom with one of his candles (he also makes and sells candles to raise funds for various worthy causes).

As you can imagine, one small flame illumined our entire bathroom. Well, almost the entire bathroom. The far corners were still hidden in the shadows. Caleb, our budding theologian, said, Look at that Mom. There are two dark corners still. That's sort of like my friends."

Picking up the candle and moving toward the corner he said, "Isn't the best way to light up their darkness to take the light to them?"

That was the impetus for us to start a weekly neighborhood guys group in our own home... As weeks turned into months following our "bathroom incident," we realized it was time to stop inviting these youth to go to church and bring church to them. One young friend has put his trust in Jesus and is coming to out house for follow-up."

Check out Matthew 5:14-16. This story makes those verses come to life.

My Story

Back in October, I took up the challenge to write my story; specifically to tell the story of one change Christ has made in my life. I started this journey here. My next goal is to commit this to memory so that I will be able to share it naturally. As to the power of the story, I shared this with a friend a few weeks ago and it really connected with him. I don't think he is trusting Christ yet, but it is a good start. So here goes:


The biggest struggle in my life has been feeling like I need to prove myself to God and others. It is no fun and there is no freedom in my self-worth being indexed to my performance plus other’s opinions. The constant feeling of failure was like a chain tied around my ankle. It had a paralyzing effect on me.

But Jesus Christ has been intervening in my life and taking that chain off. Instead of feeling like I have to prove myself to God, He has given me a sense of worth apart from anything that I do. I am accepted and approved. God gives that to me not because of anything I have done, but rather based on His mercy for me. I am on a journey to fully experience the gift of worth in my life. So for me, Jesus has changed me from feelings of failure to a standing of worth.

Sad Day

Ron Santo

Cubbie nation is grieving today. Ron Santo died last night.

One of the best players to never to be elected to the Hall of Fame.

He and Pat Hughes were amazing. Whether it was talking about Ron's hairpiece or how an infielder should have played the last ground ball, Ronnie and Patrick were classic.

He will be missed. God comfort his family and help the Cubs.

I know you're gonna say no, but....

I forget which ManChild started it, but there is a new phrase in our home. It goes something like this:

"I know you are gonna say no, but can I....."

Like 10 minutes before dinner, "I know you gonna say no, but can I have a piece of candy?" Interesting strategy. Not sure if it's use is intended to soften the parent or pre-console the ManChild.

The strategy doesn't really work. However there have been a time or two when the request had merit on its own. So perhaps from the ManChild's perspective, the apparent 10% success rate is worth it!

God's Grace: Even to Those He Opposes

My family and I have been reading through the Older Testatment's main story line (Genesis, first part of Exodus, Numbers, parts of Deuteronomy, Joshua, Judges, 1 & 2 Samuel, 1 & 2 Kings, Ezra, Nehemiah).

We are currently in 1 Samuel, where the author seems to be proving that David is the rightful king of Israel and not Saul. Saul = no heart for God. David = heart for God.

Anyways, Saul, unbeknownst to him, is living out the string. In 1 Sam 28, Saul can't get a response from God as to if he would succeed in defeating the Philistines. God is silent: no dreams, the Urim is broken and the prophets have lost their voices, or something like that. And Saul is rattled. I think all of us would hate to experience a God’s silence.

So Saul goes undercover to a woman who is a medium to conjure up poor Samuel. Saul is stunned to find out that tomorrow he and his sons will be dead. End of a dynasty. One-hit wonder. I wonder if Saul wishes that he didn’t know what he just found out?

All this got me wondering. Was God, even in His judgment of Saul, being gracious in His silence? Please don’t draw any comparisons, but are there times when I don’t recognize God’s grace in my life? Oh my….

Operation World

Get it.


Read it.


Pray it.



Operation World: The definitive prayer guide to every nation.

Quantity vs. Quality of Life

This devotional was written by a Nigerian friend of mine. Thank you Lord for Your diverse body!


It is good to live a long life here on earth; however, it is by far better to live a quality life even if the life span turns out to be very brief. Living for the purpose God created you for is the only path to a quality life. It is sad that some of us in our 30's, 40's, 50's and even 60's are still confused about our purpose on earth and continue to pursue with vigor education, work, sports, fame, politics, power, money, pleasure, etc more than what God made us for. We do all these things but still come out empty. John the Baptist died at the age of 31 having completed his purpose of preparing the way for the Messiah; Jesus Christ died at the age of 33 having completed the work of our salvation; Paul died at an old age having "fought the good fight and finished the race..." If your life was to be terminated today will you have the confidence to declare that you have accomplished the purpose for which God made you? Remember: education, work, sports, fame, politics, power, money, pleasure, etc will not count. Have you discovered why you are here and are you devoted to that course? Or are you being distracted by other things and cannot focus on your calling and you are 30, 40, 50, 60 or even 70 years of wasted life? Don't go one more day without finding out your purpose from God's Word and committing yourself to it.

Lord help us...

Cruise Line

Here is a promo video for a cruise. Looks like fun!

Christianity or Judaism?

I am part of a Renovation group. It is a group of pastors from six different churches in the community who come to study how to get the Church on task with God's mission together as a single Church. The goal is to think through how do we give every man, woman and child the repeated opportunity to see, hear and respond to the Gospel in our area? We are working through Dwight Smith's material (click here for more info). I find the times together extremely refreshing and invigorating.

Last week we met and talked about how our churches tend to reflect Judaism. It seems that the church is the new temple, the pastor is the new priest, and Sunday is the new Sabbath. As someone said tongue-in-cheek: Luther came to liberate us from the priests and put us under the pastor! Wow, there is a lot of truth to that. Sounds like we may need Hebrews 2.0.

Then he went on regarding church leadership. Church leadership is not for the church. Rather, it is for the world. The leadership of a church is doing its job when the community/world are impacted. In addition, it is not what I do as a leader, but what I cause to be done through others.

There is so much to reflect on and pray about. This stuff has huge implications and needs to be thought through very well and wisely. Bottom line is to get myself and the church on mission with God.

Power of a Story

As a church, we are going through the Willow Creek series Just Walk Across the Room. Bill Hybels is a master at evangelism and the series has been very good for me.

This last Sunday, we were encouraged to prepare an account for the hope that is in us. I've often struggled/wondered what kind of testimony a guy who became a Christian at 5 or 6 would have. Yeah, I was saved from a life of addiction, prison and Rock n Roll......at the age of 6! While that may be funny, growing up in a Christian home is a privilege and God saves people from every background. My need of a Savior is just as bad as the "vilest offender." I am not saved based on my qualifications, but according to His mercy for me.

But it got me thinking: I am in the process of being saved, of becoming like Christ. What is Christ saving me from now? Oh my! The answer is quite clear and boy, do I ever have a testimony! So I need to get writing. My goal is to make it brief (200 words or less), simple, humble, and Christ centered.

200 Yard Golf Shot

The perfect excuse for the next time my ball goes in the drink.
The video res is a little big, but still worth it.

Success in the Church

I've been challenged lately about what does success look like in the a local church? Is it when the church parking lot is full?

All in all, I've never really thought through this issue with this specific question. It is a good question for just about anything. I think the answer is enlightening and perhaps a game changer.

I love what Dwight Smith, author of "Invading Secular Space" says. Here's a short intro video:


According to Smith, an inadequate definition of success is "more people, more money, happy people." Hmmmm. Instead the definition of success in the church should be the extent to which each person in the congregation is living out their faith in the context that God has put them - that is they are invading secular space. Double hmmm.

Northwoods 2010

When we arrived, the mosquitoes were malnourished and anemic. Now they have been declared obese and are enrolled in Jenny Craig. The Hopkins family enjoyed two weeks in the woods of Wisconsin and the UP - truly an amazing and unique place. Here are some pics....

The boys looking for the fish!

And then they found the fish...

Nice billy-bass off of Crooked Lake.

Nathan even got in on the action...

Great northern on Lower 9 Mile.