Overcoming Herculean Challenges
I used to think pirates were as imaginary as the Tooth Fairy until I realized I was just confusing the real thing for a cartoon caricature. It’s easy to do the same with God, especially when we are staring down a challenge that feels absolutely insurmountable. If you feel like a million-to-one shot today, come read why "one plus God" is the only majority that actually matters.
The Tumbleweed and the Tree
I’ve lived through enough Texas hurricanes to know that every crack and pop in the dark sounds like an ending. After Hurricane Ike, I saw century-old giants standing tall while younger trees were split like matchsticks, their survivors’ scars proving that toughness is grown, not given. If you’ve spent your retirement feeling more like a rootless tumbleweed than a sturdy oak, come read why those marks on your heart aren't blemishes—they’re the proof that your roots are finally finding the stream.
The Real You Is Not Employable
I leaned across my desk and told a young man that his "real self" simply wasn't very employable. It was a blunt moment in my classroom, but it sparked a realization about why we all need someone who loves us enough to tell us the unvarnished truth. Real friendship isn't about constant flattery; it’s about having the courage to offer a "faithful wound" that leads to a better life.
Love God and Do What You Will
I found myself staring at a blank screen today, paralyzed by the fear of making the wrong choice for this new writing journey. It’s easy to dress up indecision as "waiting on the Lord," but I’ve realized that staying stuck actually denies the very providence of God. If your heart is aimed at Him, you can finally stop over-analyzing and find the freedom to just do something.
The God Who Wastes Nothing
I used to look back at the countless hours I poured into failed projects and think, "What a waste." But I’ve learned that God’s economy is a bit like a bag of walnuts—where we see trash to be swept away, He sees the exact ingredient needed to refine us. If you’re currently kicking yourself over a season of life that feels like "spoiled meat," come read why your abject failures are often the very tools God uses to scrape away pride and prepare you for the chapters yet to be written.
The Dollar-Thirty-Nine Tribute
I’ve eaten on cruise ships with artisan bakers and dined in restaurants where the bread has a crust you have to fight with, yet every Thanksgiving, I still buy the cheap brown-and-serve rolls in the plastic bag. I don’t buy them for the flavor; I buy them because they are a dollar-thirty-nine tribute to a working-class father who didn't have much, but always made sure we were fed. If you find yourself holding onto a "useless" tradition this year, come read why those little echoes and gummy rolls are the way we keep our loved ones at the table long after their chairs have gone empty.
The Long Walk Between Holidays
We’ve just finished trying to live inside a Norman Rockwell painting, and we’re already staring down the festive village of a Currier and Ives Christmas. But today is just the long, utilitarian bridge that connects the two—a quiet span where the turkey is gone, the feet are sore, and "active rejoicing" feels like it would require a long nap first. If you’re feeling a bit washed out between the celebrations, come read why the greatest gladness today isn't found in the noise, but in the simple, steady grace of catching your breath.
The Cost of a Manufactured Winter
In this piece, I look at the uniquely Texan insanity of cranking the A/C down to 60 just so we can light a "cozy" fire in the fireplace . It’s a humorous admission of how hard we work to stage a perfect holiday feeling, even if it means burning logs and electricity at the same time . But beneath the absurdity lies a deeper truth: we manufacture these traditions because we are terrified that without the physical reminders, the spiritual thread will snap for the next generation .
The Grace of the Levelheaded
Abraham Lincoln declared Thanksgiving a national holiday in 1863, not during a time of prosperity, but in the bitter heart of the Civil War. Today, as we navigate a world that feels just as fractured and caustic, the challenge is to maintain a "seasoned" temperament that is slow to take offense and quick to offer grace. If you’re bracing yourself for a difficult conversation around the dinner table today, come read why living at peace "as far as it depends on you" is the most powerful way to honor the God who has already forgiven us so much.
Now, Wait Just a Minute
I sat in my pastor’s office thirty-five years ago and flatly told him I didn't have a single thing to be thankful for. I was blinded by a beat-up car and a bank account that couldn't cover a new pair of jeans for my kids, but he stopped me mid-sentence with five words that permanently realigned my heart. If you feel like life is coming up empty today, you might just need the same gentle interruption that changed everything for me.