2021

*A contributor who wishes to remain anonymous helped with this article. *There is a video version of this article at the bottom of the post. Three lies we have believed as Evangelicals. God have mercy. 1. We Believed Actions Were More Important Than Communication and Character. We believed you could untangle these three elements ofContinue reading “Three (Lies We Believed)”

I’ve decided to write haikus this year to help me process things (like Ricky Baker in Hunt for the Wilderpeople). A haiku is a form of poetry which originated in Japan. Haikus typically contain three lines of poetry; the first line holding 5 syllables, the second 7, and the third 5 again. In my pieceContinue reading “Three (Stanzas of Haiku)”

There are two phrases that keep coming back to me. “It is what it is.” & “It’s not what it could be.” The new year is a new slate, symbolically anyways. The spike and then steep dive in gym memberships around this time of year tells us flipping the page on the calendar doesn’t intrinsicallyContinue reading “Three (Local Pastors Told Me Their Hopes for 2021)”

I’m kind of a hoarder, but really only when it comes to things I write (so it’s ok, right?). I’ve got journals from the last 10 years, all the notebooks, songs, poetry, and class notes I’ve ever penned. Or at least I thought I did. Tonight, I was preparing for a comprehensive Bible & TheologyContinue reading “Reflecting on the New Years”

In episode 7 on The Abstract Podcast, we wrestled with the idea and implications of the death penalty and looked at what Paul has to say in Romans 13. Below are some of my own thoughts (compiled for a class assignment) and posted here to accompany our discussion on the podcast. There are certainly varyingContinue reading “What About Capital Punishment?”

a short poem for Easter this year.

This is a revised version my capstone paper for the communication studies program at TFC. The full paper can be found here. Workin’ Nine to Five The workweek is often viewed as a prerequisite to the weekend. This is to say the workweek is a necessary, but somewhat contemptible, element of surviving 21st century AmericanContinue reading “What’s the Weekend For?”

Carolina. Last summer, Aleisha and I were in Arizona sitting around a dinner table when someone threw out a job offer and said we should move out. At the time, I was doing an internship for my degree while Aleisha was leading a group of interns at Aim Right Ministries. After those six weeks inContinue reading “How We Got to Memphis”

In the last two weeks I put put together three videos telling stories. The first is about the first week of vacation bible school at Aim Right. The second is a highlight video shot at Circle K Camp in Colorado where Aim Right takes a group of teens each summer. And the third is aContinue reading “Telling Tales, Taking Trips”

nothing is static as a matter of fact. but the world is a hard and strange place that’s been chosen for us to live in. nothing is static, no full stop, but we pretend it is, just to stay alive. — when i stumble down the stairs, bleary eyed in the dark cocktail of aContinue reading “objeción”

I’ve never been big on using the language of “spiritual attacks,” but I think I was spiritually attacked. The week before we moved to Arizona, we bought a bike for me. It was a beautiful red and silver bike with narrow road tires and a heck of a lot of gears. I was pretty proudContinue reading “Do I Have to Give Money When People Ask?”

Preface A few weeks ago I sat down with my friend to eat some Vietnamese food, and over my lemongrass dish I explained about a piece I’d starting writing – this piece about getting vaccinated. And my friend wasn’t convinced it was a good idea – you should at least put it behind a paywallContinue reading “To Be (Vaccinated) or Not To Be”

My wife, Aleisha, and I live in Phoenix, AZ and have just started attending a church a few blocks from our house. We’re beginning the work of making friends, getting connected, finding a place. Lately, I’ve been doing a lot of reflecting on the tradition and church I was raised in. Many of my dearestContinue reading “Gender Roles in Church: Some Reflections”

One of my goals is to become a counselor. That said, therapy, mental health, and counseling ideas are something I think and read about a good deal. This week, I came up with an idea for a way of helping myself understand my own life, and I wonder if it might be helpful for someoneContinue reading “Tell Yourself a Story”

We are drawing the curtain on the year, and I want to say thanks – thanks for stopping by this page to read my work and my thoughts from time to time. Maybe you found what I had to say helpful – maybe it make you stop and think – maybe shake your head. MaybeContinue reading “Dear Readers”