NEW BOOK! Title Announcement

Excited to announce the title for my upcoming book:

“Grace Changes Everything”

This book is based off a series by the same name that I have taught at the juvenile detention center. From the introduction:

“Grace changes everything. It is a simple yet profound statement. I have seen the truth of it borne out over and over again throughout my life - from my own personal growth in God’s grace, to seeing grace impact the lives of countless young people at my county’s juvenile detention center.

 

Grace is what can take a life that has been torn apart by the darkness of this sinful world, and put it back together, piece by piece. Grace is what can redeem the past of someone who has committed horrible acts and bring them into a right relationship with God.

 

Grace is what secures our future and gives us an eternal home in Heaven. Grace is what can drive the change in our everyday lives and impact our relationships and interactions with others.

 

Without God’s grace, we are helpless and hopeless. Fortunately, He knew what we needed and stepped into our world to die on a cross, pay our sin debt, and show us His grace.”

I am really excited about this project and am looking forward to seeing it come together. Look for a cover release in July!

Thankful for the Brighter Days

 

This Thanksgiving holiday has been very introspective for me. It's been six years since the darkest year of my life. And yet? Even though this year has brought its own burdens to carry and trials to deal with, as I look back, it has been a good year. 

"It's a good day!"

Nine years ago today...

From When You Can't See The Shepherd, Chapter 3, pp43-44

"October 28, 2013, was a cold, dark morning. Around 5 AM, we bundled Casey into the van, still in his pajamas, and made the trek to the Cardinal Bernardin Cancer Center at Loyola University in Maywood, IL. With great apprehension we sat with him, waiting for him to be taken back for a biopsy. Nervous laughter punctuated the tension as he began to humorously respond to the medicine they give before surgery. Finally, it was time to let him go.

While the biopsy only took about an hour, it seemed like days. Finally, we were taken to the consultation room to wait for the oncologist. The door opened, and my heart was in my throat. The oncologist walked in, still in his surgical scrubs and the mask still over his face. He removed the mask, and a big smile broke out on his face as he declared, “It’s a good day!” Overwhelmed with emotion, I wept with gratitude for God’s goodness.

The growth in his bone that had appeared to be a tumor turned out to be a benign fibrous dysplasia. Subsequent follow-ups over the years have showed no change, and as I write this, Casey is an amazing sixteen-year-old high school junior, terrorizing the roads with his learner’s permit.

To this day, I cannot even think about that moment in the consultation room, much less talk about it, without the tears beginning to flow again. Moments like these are why God told Israel to set up monuments and not remove them; their children could then look back, hear about, and see the faithfulness of God.

Trials hurt. The valley gets dark. Testing is never easy; but, if we look back, we will see that God has always brought us through and will continue to do so. If we don’t quit in the middle of the story, we too can come forth shining like gold."

 

Deer Stand Devotionals: His Eye is on the Sparrow

Momma robin feeding her fallen baby

Last night we tried to rescue a baby robin. It had fallen out of a nest earlier in the day. It couldn't fly, although it was desperately attempting to. All day I watched it alternate between resting and trying to flap its way back to the nest. I watched momma robin continue to feed it and chase away other birds. I listened to her frantic cries whenever we came within ten feet of her baby, even though we meant it no harm. We were simply checking on it. 

As dusk descended, we were faced with a decision. I knew the terrible fate that was lurking in the tree line. 

Deer Stand Devotionals: Is Your Love Showing?

I had a horrible dream last night. When I woke up, I was really bothered by it, because in my dream, my ugly sin nature showed up. More on that in a bit.

This week at detention center I was given a really nice compliment by one of the detention center staff who has been around as long as I have. He has watched my ministry there, he has seen how our church has loved and welcomed the youth, and he said, "You guys operate how Christians are supposed to. You exemplify the love of Christ."

That was super encouraging to hear. I also found it ironic in a way because earlier in the week, I had just read this verse: 

In Ways I Never Imagined

 Many of us have gone through phases where we try to bargain with God. You know, the "God just get me out of this one thing this one time and I'll..." 

"Help me pass this test I didn't study for; don't let the teacher remember to call my parents..."

But what happens when we beg Him for something we perceive is good? When we fast and pray, crying out on our knees before Him to heal a broken heart, to fix a broken marriage, to repair a damaged relationship?

After all, it's not like we're begging Him for a new sports car or a lump of cash. No, we're pleading for something that by any stretch of the imagination is a good thing.

So what happens when the answer is no?

Weathering the Storm

And they came to him, and awoke him, saying, Master, master, we perish. Then he arose, and rebuked the wind and the raging of the water: and they ceased, and there was a calm.  And he said unto them, Where is your faith?...Luke 8:24‭-‬25

"Where is your faith?" 

It is a question that still rings out to us 2000 years later. Where is our faith? Is it in jobs, family, government, unemployment benefits?

While it is important for us to provide for our families and take care of them, where is our faith? Are we trusting that job to provide, or are we trusting that when we do what we're supposed and what we can, that God is going to fill in the details?

I know there are many unemployed right now. If you live in Illinois like I do, good luck getting your benefits. But is your faith in those benefits? 

This is a subject that is easy to write about, but harder to put into practice. One of the hardest things I've had to do is trust God that He will protect the hearts and minds of my kids.

Without going into detail, there's a family member actively trying to sway them away from living for the Lord. I have to remember that God loves them more than I do, and trust that He will work in the situation. 

So where are you struggling today?

Where is your faith?