Ordinary Grace Blog
The Latest Posts
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A Good Response on the 250th (and beyond)
“Above all, maintain constant love for one another, for love covers a multitude of sins.” –1 Peter 4:8 Last October, Lori and I enjoyed a week in Utah. Traveling with her brother and sister-in-law we visited five national parks–Arches, Bryce Canyon, Canyonlands, Capitol Reef, and Zion. Each of those places has incredible beauty and, despite…
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What Was I Thinking?
“I do not understand my own actions. For I do not do what I want, but I do the very thing I hate.” –Romans 7:15 I don’t usually remember my dreams, but one night recently my subconscious imagined an encounter with Jimmy Dixon. I had not thought of Jimmy for a long time as he…
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A Look Back
“forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead, I press on toward the goal for the prize of the heavenly call of God in Christ Jesus.” –Philippians 3:13b-14 Lori and I just returned from a trip to Iceland and Greenland. Over the course of ten days we saw geysers and glaciers, waterfalls…
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The Best Place to Start
“Do nothing from selfish ambition or conceit, but in humility regard others as better than yourselves.” –Philippians 2:3 Eight years ago, the congregation I was serving granted me a 12-week sabbatical. Over the span of that time away, I traveled extensively, including overseas visits to Armenia and Georgia, Kenya and South Africa. The theme for…
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When We Just Can’t See It
“He laid his hands on Saul and said, ‘Brother Saul, the Lord Jesus… has sent me to you so that you may regain your sight and be filled with the Holy Spirit.’’ Acts 9:17 In 2005, Lori and I attended my college reunion. Other than a similar gathering ten years earlier, I had not returned…
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The Best Foundation
“Everyone then who hears these words of mine and acts on them will be like a wise man who built his house on rock.” –Matthew 7:24 During my childhood, our family lived in five different homes. For those of you who spent your entire growing-up years in one place, such frequent re-locating might seem strange…
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A Place For Us
“Abraham buried Sarah his wife in the cave of the field of Machpelah…in the land of Canaan Genesis 23:19 The verse above comes from a chapter that tells of the death of Sarah, the wife of Abraham, at the age of 127. “Abraham went in to mourn for Sarah and to weep for her” the…
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A So-Called Church
“Why do you see the speck in your neighbor’s eye, but do not notice the log in your own eye?” –Matthew 7:3 A few years ago, I took the opportunity to worship at another church located a half-hour away. I didn’t get to do that very often in the years that I…
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A Journey with Mom
“She opens her mouth with wisdom, and the teaching of kindness is on her tongue.. Her children rise up and call her happy.” Proverbs 31:26, 28a This post appears on Mother’s Day. On the subject of moms–biological and relational–I am a particularly blessed man. Everyday Lori, our daughter, and daughter-in-law inspire me with their love…
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An Uncomfortable Faith
“Peter said to him, ‘Lord, you will never wash my feet.’ Jesus answered, ‘Unless I wash you, you have no share with me.’” –John 13:8 26 years ago, I spent four days touring Washington, D.C. as a chaperon on our son’s fifth grade class trip. In many ways, it was terrific event. I had been…