Growing up in south Texas, hauling hay was a summer tradition, perhaps even a rite of passage into manhood. 

For you city folk, hauling hay is how ranchers gather and store up their hay for the winter—to make sure the cows have something to eat. First, the rancher would pull a massive machine called a hay baler, typically behind a tractor, through his field of overgrown grass. The baler would tie up the grass into 40-pound rectangular bundles and spit them back out onto the field. 

To gather up and store the…

In his novel, The Ingenious Gentleman Sir Quixote of La Mancha, also known as Don Quixote, Miguel de Cervantes paints a tragic and yet comedic picture of a would-be warrior who takes on, of all things, windmills. Believing them to be giants to be slain, Quixote raises his lance and charges. He fancies himself a knight, fighting to bring back chivalry to a fallen world. In his mind he is noble. He is a gentleman. He is a lone warrior in the fight for good. 

He is also completely insane. 

Every day, several…

You know how you can hear or read a piece of Scripture for years and then, all of the sudden, after the umpteenth time, something new jumps out in the text? 

I’ve heard many sermons about the Sermon on the Mount. I’ve seen theatrical portrayals of it in movies, television series and even stage dramas. So it surprised me recently when I read through it again and something jumped out. 

In Matthew 5:6, Jesus says, 
“Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled” (NIV). 

Why…

Not too long ago, there was a powerful country that most of the world respected. It was the country where those from all over the globe aspired to one day live. This country was called Acirema. Acirema was founded on the basic principles of honesty, respect and compassion for its fellow man. It was a land of opportunity and dreams. 

Now that’s not to say Acirema was a perfect country. Far from it. People still made mistakes, some did bad things from time to time. But overall, it was a good place because…

When I was a kid, I hated musicals. Not disliked. Not “let’s see what else is on TV”, I HATED them. With a passion. If I came across a musical on television I would growl, roll my eyes or even motion like I was trying to gag myself with my finger.

I loathed musicals.

I know that may sound odd for someone whose life has been largely enveloped in music, but it’s true. And it may not be for the reasons you think. Was it the quality of the songs? No…those Mary Poppins tunes are extremely catchy. Was it the…

Today, I released my first book on Amazon. It's a short devotional/discussion guide titled The Roaring Gnat. In this book I share some personal stories but focus primarily on helping you identify those "gnats" that wish to distract you from the things God has called you to do. 
Please go check it out on Amazon, it's only $2.99. And please rate it! That's how books show up in Amazon's search engines. The more and better the reviews, the more likely it is to show up on their list.
Thank you! 

This past weekend, my pastor did some meddling—as he’s been known to do—in my personal life. Yep, he had the audacity to teach a message pointed directly at me. I’m not sure the other congregants even needed to attend. He started the message saying, “I’ll say a name and you shout out what they’re known for.” At first, it was an easy exercise:

“Tom Hanks”…the crowd shouted “acting!”

“Beethoven” Even the little ones knew this one. “Music!”

“Peyton Manning” “Football!” most said. Although my answer…

I have a few friends who are non-believers. (Some of you may even be reading this post.) And while I totally get their skepticism, it hurts. It hurts to know that they are removed from God, removed from the promise of an eternity with our Creator. I love these people. I would love to see them in eternity. But our friendships have been, "hey, we're all good, as long as you don't bring that religion stuff into it." 

I get it. They've have been hurt by the Church, they feel religion is too restricting or…

If you follow my posts at all, you know that I often speak of my dreams. Since I was just a little guy, I have had extremely vivid dreams. And, like some people, I remember just about every detail. That can be a blessing or a curse, depending on the dream. This story is about a dream I had not too long ago that absolutely depressed me. 

I dreamed I was flying. I know what you're thinking: "what's so bad about that?" Well, typically nothing. But some things have changed in the way I fly in my dreams. I…