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The Person Behind the Issue
One of the things inherently dangerous about engaging in an issue I’m emotionally sensitive about, is the tendency to place the issue between me and the person I’m engaged with. If I do that I kill the possibility of meaningful dialogue. The issue becomes paramount. The person becomes secondary. One of the reasons I opt for giving the issue priority is because I tend to WANT the issue to be…
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Who Is On Your Radar Screen
A radar screen (Plan Position indicator or PPI) shows you a 360° view of what is within your sphere of influence. You and I are the rotating antenna in the center of our respective screen. As you think about engaging in the public fray are you familiar with the contents (people and things) on your radar screen? Can you easily name them? When I answer those questions for myself, I…
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Engage How?
If you’re going to jump into the fray of public discourse, what’s your plan? How do you mean to engage? Who are you taking your cues from? Why are you there and what is it you want to accomplish? These are all questions I’m asking myself. FAR more importantly I’m asking the Lord these questions. I hope you are too. If you know you’re meant to engage, it’s imperative you…
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Put Me In, Coach
Greetings, Weary Citizens! How are you doing making sense of the upheaval all around you? Where are you going for information, for consolation, for solidarity__ Who is getting the bulk of your vocalizations? Who has your ear? Where are you on the spectrum of opinion? It’s a VERY wide spectrum, wider than ever. How do you believe Christians ought to be conducting their lives in these stormy days? Are you…
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Selfless | Lent 2024
As I journey very slowly through the passages of scripture that cover the hours of the Last Supper and the walk to the garden of Gethsemane, I am overwhelmed by the selflessness of Jesus. Everything I need to know about what it means to love someone is in the narrative. Jesus and His twelve disciples share Passover, then take a walk together. He uses the time to prepare His inner…
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Thankful | Lent 2024
Twice in the final week of Jesus’ life leading up to the cross, He is anointed for burial, (Jesus, Love to the End, pages 43-46). In both instances the room is teeming with people, but as significant as these events are, Jesus and only one single other person understand what’s happening. All the others present are in different head spaces. My melancholy tendencies want to grieve for how clueless almost…
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The Closing of Jesus’ Public Life | Lent 2024
We are in week three of Lent which begins the day after Jesus triumphal entrance into Jerusalem, (Jesus, Love to the End, pages 31-50). These are some of the most compelling days in history. As you read your entries this week, I pray you will afford yourself enough time to become immersed in the story of the final days of Jesus public ministry. There are far more details recorded in…
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Jesus’ Ways | Lent 2024
I’m meditating on the words of Jesus found in Luke 6:27-36, (Jesus Love to the End, pages 20-22). He talks about love in a way so foreign to me, even though I have belonged to Him for decades. I wonder if this is the same for you too. A statement like “Do good to those who hate you” is an action statement. It’s more than thinking nice thoughts about that…
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Jesus’ Person | Lent 2024
Jesus’ connection with the Holy Spirit is well represented within the Easter narrative. You’re going to read a few Lent entries about this in week two which begins tomorrow. It strikes me that the Holy Spirit, whom Jesus has been in relationship with from eternity, is Jesus’ key person. There’s more mystery in that supposition than I can possibly grapple with. But what’s on my mind today is this__the Holy…
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Consider Him | Lent 2024
I was struck, as I read today’s Lent entry, (Jesus, Love to the End, pages 4-6), that the Lord Himself is offering me an opportunity to commune with Him. Each day, He invites me into a dialogue where I can talk to Him and He can talk to me. I know that is painfully obvious, but today that reality strikes me deeply. I’m asking Him to let that reality come…
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Lent 2024
Today marks day one of Lent. If you don’t have a Lent tradition I encourage you to explore what’s available so that your journey toward Easter (yes, it’s right around the corner) will be meaningful for you and those around you. I’m prayerfully recommending Jesus, Love to the End as a devotional for you this Lent season. It’s available on Amazon. The story of the life of Jesus, particularly the…
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Complimentary Audio Book
Hi Readers, Happy Tuesday to you! The Fourth Chair is now available as an audio book. My publisher send me a chunk of promo codes (free download of the book) which I’d love to share with you in exchange for a short Amazon review. If you think you’d like to listen to the book and then write a one paragraph review on Amazon, please respond to this email and I’ll…
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The Fourth Chair in E-Book
Hello Faithful Readers,The Fourth Chair e-book is officially for sale through Barnes & Noble and Amazon. The audio version of the book will be available soon. I’ll let you know about that when it happens. Physical book sales are going well and for now are available exclusively through thefourthchairbook.com. It’s been wonderful to hear from some of you as you’re reading the book. I’m always grateful for your input, so…
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Book Launch Today!
It’s today–the official launch of The Fourth Chair! The books have arrived at the publisher’s and are ready to ship. I’m very excited and also grappling with the book’s unknown future (heart on my sleeve alert). What does God have in mind for this book? Who does He have in mind to read it? Time will tell, and I get to practice what I preach by ensuring He remains in…
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July News
Dear Readers,I pray each of you are enjoying the summer months. Yesterday I was thinking there is something special about the feel of summer vacation even when I’m still busy working. I hope you experience something similar! At the moment, I’m recording the audio book for The Fourth Chair | Uncovering Your Invitation to Come Home. I’ve taken over my mother’s walk-in closet and turned it into a temporary recording…
