A Prayer for President-Elect Obama

November 7, 2008.Reading time 3 minutes.

Ross Wise is a friend of mine. He and wife Sharon live in the beautiful East Texas town of Gilmer. I know Ross because he’s a Kerrvert…and even more intimately than that, he’s a “Nasbillian” like me. But, unlike me, Ross is a Baptist and a Republican. That’s why this prayer he’s written captured my […]

Yes We Can

November 6, 2008.Reading time 4 minutes.

(link) It was a creed written into the founding documents that declared the destiny of a nation. Yes, we can. It was whispered by slaves and abolitionists as they blazed a trail toward freedom. Yes, we can. It was sung by immigrants as they struck out from distant shores and pioneers who pushed westward against […]

What We Need to Hear After the Election

November 5, 2008.Reading time 10 minutes.

Just dropped my daughter off at school. And there I took a brief peek at the election underway. The front sidewalk has sprouted dozens of signs for local candidates. There were even a few workers out for the two statehouse candidates from our district. The school is clearly braced for a huge turnout. They moved […]

Universal health coverage should be the federal government’s responsibility

October 18, 2008.Reading time 23 minutes.

This blog is about health care. But it could just as easily be about the financial crisis, the war, the environment, education, or any number of social issues before us today. Because, to my mind, there is a great confluence among the issues of our day. You can analyze them through the same lens and […]

Sarah Palin Owes Some Good People an Apology

September 7, 2008.Reading time 14 minutes.

I’ve been bothered by a snippy comment from Sarah Palin’s speech the other night, and have wanted to write about it. But Jim Wallis beat me to it. So, this morning, I will simply cite a few of the highlights of his fine blog –whose title I have borrowed as the title of this one– […]

Would it be Wrong to Pray for Rain?

September 2, 2008.Reading time 23 minutes.

I posted the video that inspired this question to my Facebook page, and it got a couple of nice comments. So I thought I’d expand my thinking on it into a blog entry. The question for this blog is: Would it be wrong to pray for rain? The answer is: it depends, I suppose. If […]

Why Did McCain Pick Palin?

August 31, 2008.Reading time 28 minutes.

I mean the above question this way: What does this pick say about his judgement? It’s an important question, because for months McCain’s been crowing about how judgment and experience are important. So, given what we know –or rather, what we don’t know– about Sarah Palin, why this person? why this woman? and why right […]

"He’s The Best I’ve Ever Seen"

August 30, 2008.Reading time 15 minutes.

Last night was historic in many ways. Many of those ways have been duly noted in papers and blogs around the nation today. But last night was historic in one intensely personal way too. It marked the first, and only, time in my entire life that my favorite candidate for President actually came away with […]

How to Save $13,636 While Driving 100,000 Miles

August 24, 2008.Reading time 12 minutes.

Did I get your attention with that headline? Hope so. Because I’m not kidding, and I’ve done the math to prove it. I am about to tell you how Dennise and I saved $13,636 by driving 100,000 miles. Let me raise the stakes. Driving that same 100,000 miles, we also reduced dangerous greenhouse gases by […]

Heartsick for NOLA and the Gulf Coast

August 14, 2008.Reading time 11 minutes.

I’m heartsick tonight. Watching the ominous sight of Gustav, and knowing what I know about NOLA and all of the Gulf Coast? It’s just heartbreaking. The past three summers, we’ve taken our mission trips to the Biloxi/Gulfport area. I know I speak for many in our church when I say that we’ve fallen in love […]