When the passive bully grows up

Posted in Stories
When the passive bully grows up

I didn’t really “fit in” in elementary school. I was scrawny, awkward, and couldn’t afford nice enough clothes to avoid the taunting of my fellow pygmys. I had two outfits that “worked,” and I wore these on rotation, hoping nobody would notice that Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays were “Rose Bowl Sweats” days, and Tuesdays and Thursdays were “long-sleeved, Pseudo-pajama Superman shirt” days. (When spring came around, I was reaaaaaaaly screwed.) Read more »

A decade in love

Posted in Stories
The story of amber and dustin

I’m not a fan of public proclamations of love. I recently heard of a man who declared on facebook how much he loved his wife then shot her the same day. Real smooth, dude. That ain’t love.

These public proclamations have become a thing to do–like visit the grocery store or take the dog for a walk. Too many people do it without thinking of what it means.

But my wife likes them. Aaaaaaand it’s her birthday. And it’s the ten year anniversary since we met. So, indulge me for 2500 words as I tell you the story of us.

Read more »

I learned to love exercise

Posted in Stories
How I've learned to love exercising

I was skinny once. Let me say that again…I was skinny once–scrawny, bony, gaunt, even. And I didn’t want to be. Even the plump kids couldn’t envy me–they made fun of me!

My parents always told me my metabolism would catch up–that I’d put on weight faster than I’d want it.

Right. Iiiiim-possible.

See, the thing is, I assumed that when I gained weight, it would conveniently form only around my pecks, biceps, and six circles around my stomach.

Oooooh no. Not a chance. Read more »

From heaven to heaven: A near death experience

Posted in Stories
Dale Swaim's Near Death Experience

Perhaps the greatest tragedy in life is that we pass people on the streets, at work, at church, or at the grocery store and never get a chance to meet them. I wonder if, one day when we meet our Maker, our greatest regret will be that we never reached out to more people and learned their story.

I almost missed this one–the story of Dale Swaim’s near death experience. Read more »

Ethan’s testimony

Posted in Stories
My silly son ethan

Meet Ethan:

That about sums it up. While Corban (my oldest) is a carbon copy of Amber (empathetic, generous, and affectionate), Ethan’s mine–silly to the bone.

Amber’s parents are leaving for Africa as missionaries and we wanted to send them a good-bye gift and have each of their children share their feelings about Jesus.

What did Ethan say?

Amber turns off the camera and asks, “what was that about???”

“I was following Jesus!” he said, feigning piousness.

Amber laughed. “Let’s try this again. I want you to say something.”

And he did.

A dad couldn’t be more proud 😉