05 Jan 2025
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Blog
Some people have a real aversion to New Years resolutions because of how often they fail or how cliche they sound. New Years resolutions often remind people of their past failures to stand by their own commitments, and there is pain there. I firmly believe in regular reflection on the past in order to recognize places to change and move. Intentional course corrections are a vital part of navigating this chaotic life.
29 Dec 2024
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Bible
If you’ve ever stumbled across Exodus 29:20 (or Leviticus 8:23 or Leviticus 14:14-28) and wondered why Moses put blood on Aaron’s earlobe, thumb, and toe, you’re not alone. This is the kind of off-the-wall question youth pastors dread. But as strange as it may seem, this symbolic act is packed with meaning—and it connects to other peculiar passages in the Bible in ways that are both fascinating and profound.
24 Mar 2024
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Bible
I was reading in 1 Samuel about when David was trying to recover his kidnapped family (and those of his army) when he gave a fig cake to an Egyptian slave who was left to die in the dessert. I thought, “When was the last time I read about a fig cake? Abigail? Surely there was one before that, like Exodus…” So I investigated. Here are my notes.
15 Jul 2023
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Adoption
Next month is August. A year ago, we were preparing to travel to Taiwan to pick up our two kids. A little later, all those plans came crumbling down, and we spend four months in depression, fear, and unknown. I captured how I felt at the time in an earlier blog post, and reading it today brought me to tears. As I have continued to study the Bible and allow it to change me, I kept coming back to the psalms: song written to capture the stories of people who feared, doubted, wept, and came out the other side praising Yahweh for his faithfulness. I set out to write my own psalm to capture that time, but I ended up stitching together 19 passages that express my heart more than my own fumbling words ever could.
16 Mar 2023
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Adoption
return home day
In preparation for our return trip home, we slept horribly. Noah kept kicking me in the back and Jack couldn’t sleep, so we both ended up sleeping poorly on the couch in the living room.