On the day my natural self was vanquished and exhaled its last breath, I was ready–for the first time–to play “SECOND FIDDLE.” And it was then, only then, that God blessed my life beyond comprehension. I don’t dwell on why it took so long for me to get this right. God does not want me to waste even one minute on my past that had me intoxicated by success and money.    Once I...

The recent spate of frigid weather holding the U.S. hostage has produced record low temperatures and left tragic stories of death and destruction in its wake. Temperatures plummeted to a “feels like” reading of -50 in some areas. The “feels like” term used to be called the wind-chill factor, but the words do not matter. IT’S COLD! All of that prompted me to apply the FEELS LIKE...

Early in my career as a CEO, a colleague visiting from Japan went to Napa for a weekend at the end of his trip. The first morning he joined a guide and newly-married couple for a tour over the magnificent vineyards. But the ride was over seconds after lift-off. They hit a power line at 23 feet above ground and a fire started in the balloon!    At first, nobody wanted to heed the guide’s...

It’s a safe bet that almost every Christian has walked past people in desperate need of our intervention on God’s behalf. Our unconditional love. Our Christ-like comfort. These hurting souls may not show the physical signs of a person writhing in pain, but inside they are on fire. And, sadly, some of them may be near the end of their capacity to hang on by themselves.    This startling reality...

You know this story with its dark and pessimistic theme, right? It comes from the European folk tale about a chicken who believes the world is coming to an end. The story’s “sky is falling” hook is firmly entrenched in the world’s lexicon as the false belief that disaster is imminent. Versions of the story go back more than 25 centuries! The sky-is-falling perspective was how I viewed what was...

It took a long time, but I finally allowed God to convince me that our faith walk is meant to be an orchestral score of notes that are the decisions we need to (must) make…but do not. I try to look at this dynamic as having a DECISIVE MINDSET and predisposition to act. I do not want to force decisions. I want to have a decisive spirit with my radar on 24/7. I want to stay intimately connected to God...

I watched the Grammys last night with a kaleidoscope of emotions ranging from bemusement to fascination to sheer exhilaration. The narrative playing in my mind beneath those emotions was dominated by the superficial pageantry.  But the theme of the night for me was PRAYER.    You’re no doubt wondering (like me) where and why that thought originated. I’m not sure about that, but as each...

Early in my faith walk I wanted an EASY way to fire myself as boss and promote God to be the CEO of my life. I wanted to draw a line through the word SELF. It did not take long to realize that an “easy way” does not exist.    We cannot do it ourselves because dislodging the grip on self is impossible when we are clutching our fears, worries, and temptations.    Relying on...

A believer’s doubt about their faith in Christ has been around since the Apostle Thomas would not accept the resurrection of Jesus. But it’s hard to believe that doubting God was ever at the pervasive level we see today. Fueled by a cascading cacophony emanating from the bowels of a digital factory, doubt has taken a prominent seat in the minds of Christians everywhere.    And the facts...

I watched yesterday’s 53rd Super Bowl with the rest of you and came away “somewhere in the middle” on most of what came across my viewfinder. It was average and mundane. It was an average game (barely). The ads were average (except the brilliant dog-show spot from Mexican Avocados). And the players played average without a historic highlight-reel moment.    When the battle trudged to its...