Let’s talk about utensils in the Jewish Temple. They’re way cooler than you think. What, you’re not immediately engaged? Let me explain.What do you think of when you hear the word holy? Maybe you think of God. Perhaps you think of a saint. Depending on your background, you may think of Mary. Or, if you’re a turophile, maybe you’re thinking about Swiss cheese.In today’s culture, outside of church, ...  Read More

Have you seen those Progressive car insurance ads where Dr. Rick helps people not become like their parents? I get a kick out of them because every day I find myself becoming more and more like my parents. I’ll do something completely out of nowhere and think, “Wow, that was just like my dad.”Those Progressive ads are actually helpful to me because I’m not always sure which things I do are “parent...  Read More

When I was growing up, martial arts movies were all the rage. If it wasn’t Fist of Fury or The Kung Fu Shaolin Master, it was Drunken Master, Enter the Dragon, or quirky classics like Snake in the Monkey’s Shadow. A familiar storyline ran through almost every one of these films: a novice, crushed by opponents, seeks out a legendary master to learn how to fight back. Often, the student arrives driv...  Read More

More than a generation ago, some missionaries went to a little place in South Africa and shared the gospel. Like most missionaries, they were simply trying to be faithful, and somewhere along the way, the grandparents of a young man named Shaun Pillay heard the good news and believed.Shaun grew up in South Africa as a third-generation Christian. He eventually went into ministry himself, studying a...  Read More

Several years ago, my wife Allie and I took a trip to San Francisco. One of the things I had always wanted to see was the giant redwoods, so we crossed the Golden Gate and explored Muir Woods.Since elementary school, I had heard about the majesty of these trees. Some redwoods can reach over 300 feet into the air, with trunks so massive it takes multiple people holding hands to reach around them.Wh...  Read More

I’ll be honest: when I was in history class, I usually thought the most important question was, "Is this going to be on the test?" But as I got older, I realized history isn't just about memorizing dates and names; it’s about understanding people. And one story from the fourth century shows us something powerful about the impact of a life lived differently.In the fourth century, the Roman emperor ...  Read More

The Red Sox are doing it again. They’re giving me hope.I’m not sure how closely you follow baseball, but the Red Sox started this season with one of the worst records in baseball. It was so bad they fired their longtime manager, Alex Cora. And just my luck, for the first time in my New England life, I decided to bite the bullet and pay for NESN so the family could enjoy some baseball. Instead, we ...  Read More

The Pony Express is one of those romantic pieces of Americana. I picture cowboys racing across the frontier at full speed, carrying saddlebags full of letters through deserts, mountains, and dangerous territory.The Pony Express was created because it took so long for mail to travel across the country. A letter from New York to California could take weeks or even months to arrive. The Pony Express ...  Read More

My junior year of high school was spent at a very conservative Christian school. Along with the normal school rules came a very strict dress code. Girls wore ankle-length skirts and had to keep their hair long. Boys wore khakis and tucked-in button-up shirts. Our hair couldn't touch our ears or our collars. These weren't just rules on paper. After chapel, teachers stood at the exits inspecting eve...  Read More

The Narnia series is a classic. In fact, another Narnia movie is set to hit theaters in early 2027. While a lot of people know the classic story of The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe, that’s where their knowledge of the series ends. But the book series has so many great stories! My favorite as a kid was The Voyage of the Dawn Treader. It’s an adventure story that leaves the shores of Narnia in s...  Read More

This is a universal husband experience. So much so that there are probably thousands of memes about it.  Read More

Years ago, I was in a punk band. One weekend we drove to Atlanta to play a show. The whole trip was a disaster. Our hotel reservation was canceled and we didn't have enough money for another one, a couple of the cars had mechanical problems, and the show itself was a train wreck.  Read More