A while back I couldn’t figure out why my iPhone battery drained so quickly. Then I discovered I had too many apps running at the same time all the time. It got me thinking… How many “apps” do I have constantly running in my life? What’s especially draining? How about you? A few thoughts… 1)…
I recently hung out with a group of musicians—two of whom are getting married in the next few months. After enjoying the damage done by Shake Shack, I was asked for advice about how to have a happy and successful marriage. The below immediately came to mind. Thought I’d share with you too. Enjoy. Have…
Dear Grace Community Family, Forgive this “letter” being posted publicly on my blog. I figured it would get shared publicly anyway. Moreover, I thought the letter might serve well the readers and future readers of my blog to see a christian, and pastor, wrestling through the issues and struggling how to best love and lead…
Plato, at his best: “Wise men speak because they have something to say; Fools because they have to say something.” And Solomon, at his: “A fool takes no pleasure in understanding, but only in expressing his opinion” (Proverbs 18:2). Regarding social media, I’ve fallen into the fool camp more often than I’d like to admit.…
At a leadership conference earlier this year, a presenter made a remark from the platform that was quite crude, to say the least. I won’t repeat the remarks, but it had to do with giving away his male body parts if it would grow his church. And there were women in the room. It takes…
A museum in Los Angeles, California, recently opened to celebrate failure. The displays range from the featured image above to Pabst Blue Ribbon Mac & Cheese and Colgate Beef Lasagna. It’s literally called (wait for it)… The Museum of Failure. This museum strikes a nerve. We live in a culture that mostly celebrates success, especially…
Recently, a few NBA superstars went public about their battles with mental health—namely, Toronto Raptor’s Demar DeRozan, Cleveland Cavalier’s Kevin Love, and Washington Wizard’s Kelly Oubre Jr. Good for them. And good for us. Mental illness continues to carry a stigma. A broken bone is proof of injury, but with mental illness, an x-ray proves…
It’s been said that anxiety is like a rocking chair. It gives you something to do but gets you nowhere. We rock in anxiety over finances, health, family, opportunities, decisions, schedules, marriages, singleness, the future, and on I could go ad nauseum. Even when things are going too well in life we can get anxious…
Mark Twain once wrote, “Man is the only animal who blushes. Or needs to.” Man is also the only animal who has a conscience. Betray your conscience, experience the blush. Or will you? Regarding the behavior of the Jewish people of his day, the prophet Jeremiah declared, “Are they ashamed of their disgusting actions? Not…
My mom told me years ago, “Jarrod, love people. I believe we were placed on this earth to love and serve people.” I think of her words often. And I think God gave me that kind of heart. Sometimes I want to give that heart back. To love is to risk and get hurt. But…
Does your life ever feel messy, chaotic, and ugly? Think of an abstract painting up-close. It looks completely disordered and unpleasant. You shake your head and say, “I don’t get it.” But step back a few feet. Get the whole perspective. And you’ll discover beauty. The point? When it comes to our lives, we’re…
We are all broken. The damage can be the result of what was self-inflicted, life-inflicted, or others-inflicted. But it makes us who we are. It’s a key part of our story. Barbara Bloom writes, “When the Japanese mend broken objects, they aggrandize the damage by filling the cracks with gold. They believe that when something’s…
I want to share with you a 40-minute podcast interview I agreed to do with Word of Life last week. If you want to listen to it on the go, you can go here (Episode 65) In this interview, I tossed my proverbial fig leaf to the side and got cringe-worthy transparent and honest. At…
Do you get anxious, nervous, or fearful at the thought of speaking in front of a group of people? I once did too. Still do at times! I’m sure that no matter how anxious you are about an opportunity, you don’t want to just “get through it” or “get it over with.” You want to…
Am I getting it right? I have a 13-year-old, 12-year-old, 11-year-old, and a 7-year-old. Two boys and two girls. And these kinds of questions abound! Am I doing enough? Am I scarring my kids for life? I’m convinced that what I refuse to do as a dad is more important than what I do. My…