Life

Summer Fitness Ideas

Summertime affords lots of fun and exciting things to do outdoors, preferably in the early morning or early evening. Do so with these fun fitness ideas: Jump rope Burn approximately 11-14 calories a minute with this full body workout: singles, doubles, one-legged, high-knees, running, three-person combos (one in the middle). Running/Jogging/Walking/ Hiking The whole family can do this workout together. Depending on your size and workout intensity, your body will burn approximately 70-120 calories per mile. Find a nice beach, trail or park. Stay hydrated by drinking from your water bottle every five minutes. Bicycle Riding Burn 270-800 calories per […]

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This Thing Called Love

“I think that possibly, maybe, I’ve fallen for you…” As the song played in the background of the quaint Italian coffee shop, people ordered their café lattes and pastries, walking mindlessly past the young couple. To the passersby, they were two regular people having coffee — nothing noteworthy. That’s a fair judgment, though, seeing as how they felt the same way. “No one understands me quite like you do…” The song kept on, as though hand-picked for the scene, fitting perfectly as they sipped their lattes and let their eyes do all the talking. The only words that seemed to […]

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It’s Not Me It’s You

The Bible makes it clear that self-righteousness is the premier enemy of the Gospel. And there is perhaps no group of people who better embody the sin of self-righteousness in the Bible than the Pharisees. In fact, Jesus reserved his harshest criticisms for them, calling them whitewashed tombs and hypocrites. Surprisingly to some, this demonstrates that the thing that gets in the way of our love for God and a deep appreciation of his grace is not so much our unrighteous badness but our self-righteous goodness. In Surprised by Grace: God’s Relentless Pursuit of Rebels, I retell the story of […]

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Summer Priorities for Parents

The heat is on! Which means that summer has arrived. As parents, you are now faced with the daunting task of figuring out what to do with your kids during what will seem like endless days for you and fast paced days for the kids. Now that the kids are out of school, it is no easy task trying to figure out how to fill their time and keep them busy without destroying the house, trashing the back yard and hanging the cat upside down from the tree while you are at work. Are there enough activities during the day, […]

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The Gospel > Complementarianism

If you are like me, you are probably wondering what in the world the word complementarianism means! If you looked for it in your Bible you would not find it. In fact, it is not in my dictionary or spell check. Many words we use today do not appear in the Bible and yet they do reflect truths and principles from the Bible. Male and female roles If I had to “label” my understanding of male and female as God created them I would say I am complementarian. But here is the deal. If you would have asked me about […]

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Father’s Day Gifts Your Dad Actually Wants

Father’s Day is just around the corner, and we all struggle with trying to find the right gift for dad. The tie is too cliché, so what should you get him instead? The real challenge is finding a gift that your father will enjoy and actually use, so here we have a list of items that the patriarch of your household probably already wants. Keep in mind that no two fathers are exactly the same, so not everything on this list will be right for everyone. Read through, use your judgment and find what your dad is really is really […]

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The Modern Knight’s Code of Chivalry

As a child I was exposed to Disney princess movies, toys and coloring books. My friends and I learned to expect boys to leap off their white horses, draw their swords and prepare to defend our honors at a moment’s notice. However, as we grew up, it became clear we had been disillusioned. With age, the image of the valiant knight gave way to the sex-crazed savage portrayed in today’s modern commercials, TV shows and movies, and just like that – we all gave up on our hopes of finding a real-life Prince Charming. There were no longer dreams of […]

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The Psychology of Investing

Investing should be easy; just buy low and sell high, right? But most of us have trouble following that simple piece of advice. Why is it so hard? It has to do with fear, greed and something called the “Investment Psychology Cycle.” As the market cycles upward, it draws investors in, but they may pay too high a price. When the market cycles downward, fear sets in and investors may sell, often at a loss. Want a real world example? Between September 1, 2008 and February 28, 2009 the stock market lost over 40 percent of its value.* The drop […]

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He Loves Me, He Loves Me Not

Husbands love your wives… the end. If only it were that simple right? So what makes you feel loved? Dr. Gary Chapman thought this was such a vital question that he wrote an entire book about it entitled The 5 Love Languages. The book centers around figuring out what makes you and your spouse tick when it comes to feeling loved. Needless to say, it was a best seller in both the mainstream and Christian markets. Why? Because we are indeed a people searching for love, acceptance, encouragement, appreciation, acknowledgement and even applause from time to time. Thousands upon thousands […]

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Your Body Does Not Belong to You

Father’s Day is approaching and it is time to speak to the men. (Hint: this article will be totally helpful to women as well, but do not tell the men that!) To all the men out there, especially you guys who are near or over 40, the days when you felt like an invincible warrior may seem so long ago. But there is great news for you! You can feel vigorous and alive, strong and powerful, and full of energy all day long, just like you did in the “glory days” of your teens and twenties. There are some very […]

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