When I was about 15, Dad bought us a telescope. My brother and I looked at the moon and other celestial objects for hours. But then boredom set in, so we turned the telescope around and looked through it the other way. Instead of objects looking bigger and closer, they appeared smaller and further away.…
Did you see the movie, Titanic (1997)? You may remember that iconic scene when young Jack, played by Leonardo DiCaprio, stands at the bow of the ship, spreads out his arms, and shouts, “I’m the king of the world!” Most of us would never be so brash as to say that, but when we choose…
There’s Still Hope was never God’s Plan A. There. I said it. What does that mean? I’m glad you asked. The thing is, God’s Plan A was for me to get into recovery 30 years sooner. If I had done that, I would have never lost my pastoral ministry. And we would have never launched…
I don’t know if national leaders outside the United States provide much comedic material, but I am confident America’s leaders – past and present – stand at the forefront of such things. Here are just a few funny lines from some of our leaders. (Note – presidential humor is a bipartisan phenomenon.) The need for…
In order to get to the deep end of the pool, you first go through the shallow end. In recovery, the shallow end is lust and fantasy; the deep end is porn and masturbation. The key to staying out of the deep end is to stay out of the pool altogether. James identified this progression…
“Mid pleasures and palaces Though oft I may roam, Be it ever so humble, There’s no place like home.” – John Howard Payne God created two great institutions throughout history – the family and the church. It all starts with the family. What happens in the home is everything. Indeed, “there’s no place like home.”…
You’ve probably read the same surveys I’ve read. Famous people of all stripes are often asked, “If you could spend time with one person from history, who would it be?” The most common response is always the same: Jesus. By a wide margin, people say they wish they could spend time with Jesus, in the…
Have you ever read this damning verse about Israel? “Judah has become like all the other nations” (Ezekiel 25:8). That means that God’s children took on the same character, made the same choices, and adapted the same values as everyone else. And that was a problem. Writing for Harvard Business Review, Patrick M. Lencioni says…
Not every recovery tool will yield the same results. I came across this little verse the other day. It speaks directly to this issue. “You do not know which will succeed – this or that – or whether both will do equally well” (Ecclesiastes 11:6). The solution is to try multiple strategies that will bring…
A few weeks ago, I asked each of the 96 men who attended that week’s Freedom Groups to name a daily routine that helped with their recovery. One man said what no one else was thinking. “I floss.” Really? What does flossing one’s teeth have to do with recovery? This man explained, referring to a…