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Leaving Salem

There’s a proverb that says if you love something, let it go. If it returns, it’s yours. If not, well, it never belonged to you in the first place. But had my son Braden written that proverb it would go more like this: “If you love something and it won’t cooperate, stomp the guts out…

There may be no more hostile crowd than a horde of tanked-up adults cheering for their children in the heat of competition. Moms and dads shrieking and squalling; grandparents riding the umpire’s backside like a cheap suit; armchair coaches managing from the bleachers: Watching children play can devolve into nothing more than a war of…

When my wife insisted that I accompany her to the gym I thought it was a good idea. She had been pressing me about it for some time, and combined with my recent lipid readings I finally relented and agreed to go. When she informed me that we must rise at 4:30 in the morning…

I was in the hardware store when I first heard the news, though I did not know what I was hearing. As the cashier tallied my purchase, I overheard a reporter on the store’s radio make the peculiar announcement that a plane had crashed into the World Trade Center. At the time, I thought of…

“What a waste.” When a young person dies recklessly and unnecessarily, friends gather and respond, “What a waste.” When I spend an afternoon waiting and waiting (and waiting) at the dentist’s office or at the bank I conclude, “What a waste.” When I scrape mounds of uneaten food off my children’s plate into the trash…

Several years ago I sat with my young son one evening watching his favorite channel: The Cartoon Network. It wasn’t Bugs Bunny or Huckleberry Hound, but it was entertaining enough. After a few laughs Braden reached up with his small hands and rubbed the skin around my eyes and temples. He burrowed his chubby little…

“Why do you go to church?” someone asked me the other day. That’s a good question. I’ve mulled over an adequate answer more than once in my life. Yes, I have found incredible satisfaction in this thing we call “church.” But sometimes I have scratched my head in disbelief at the idiocy and foolishness of…

A familiar passage from the New Testament speaks of Jesus’ visit to the sisters, Mary and Martha. Martha, the consummate homemaker, set out to make everything perfect. Who can blame here? How many people get a personal visit from the son of God? She basted the leg of lamb. She labored over her casseroles. She…

In 1938 three German scientists working in a laboratory in Berlin made a discovery that altered the course of history: They split the uranium atom. The fear among scientists was that Adolf Hitler would create a mega-bomb and use it against Europe. This was significant enough, but what followed truly changed the world. A year…

Years ago, when I served as a pastor in North Georgia, I had an afternoon off. I decided to squeeze in a quick round of golf. There is a suspicion that pastors only work one day a week, so they can golf any time they like. Not so. The “one-day-a-week” work week is a vicious…
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