Tag Archives | Adversity

Hope is Hard | A Lesson From My Son

When my wife and I were navigating infertility and the aftermath of bad decisions, it was hard. Actually, hard isn’t an applicable word. It felt impossible. In that moment, we were no longer concerned with having a family, we were concerned with saving our marriage. The immediate feeling was hopelessness. It was an empty feeling with one logical outcome—giving up. But for reasons beyond logical explanation, we felt God’s presence more powerfully that we had ever felt it before. And […]

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You Can’t Spell Christmas Without Hope

I woke up this morning to the crushing news of the death of a classmate and friend. My heart breaks for his family and those who were close to him. Thirty-five is simply too young to die. And when it hits so close to home, it’s all the more real. In the midst of the pain, you can’t help but ask why. But as I wrestle with my emotions, I’m reminded that reason is a liar. That making sense of it […]

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Life in the Desert

A twenty-something friend reached out to me recently, just to talk. He had abandoned the idea of God in his late teen years after religious culture and hell-fire-and-brimstone left a bitter taste in his mouth. I can’t say I blame him for spitting it out. Now, after ten years of tasting all that life has to offer, he is weary—thirsty for something that life isn’t providing. Sure, he’s successful, and he’s a great guy. But he’s sinking. He’s in the midst of some […]

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My Sort-of American Idol Story

At twenty-two years old, I moved to Florida to work for one of the largest private real estate developers. This company had it all: luxurious events, world-class amenities, and a company culture with the motto, “Work hard, play harder.” As a way to build employee morale, they hosted a spinoff of American Idol, encouraging employees to take a shot at becoming the next big thing. They set up an elaborate stage and flew in Tom Arnold to host the party. And […]

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How Could I? Choosing to Forgive

Forgiveness is Missing The concept of forgiveness is unfortunately amiss in our world today, or so it seems.  Every time you turn on the television, or God forbid, pick up a newspaper, all you see is blame and resentment. Quite honestly, if you spend any time engaging these two practices, it starts to seem that forgiveness is often unattainable.  Or, forgiveness is something that can only be granted by a judicial system that we’ve lost hope in. It leads us to […]

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Completely Broken – The Amazing Story of Coach Gary Weller

The following is a true story and an excerpt from my book, Redefine Rich. Gary Weller has every reason to pin blame. He was an active, athletic man, full of life and energy. The majority of his adult life was spent engaging his passions, football and people, earning him the affectionate title of Coach. Coach was well-known and well-respected in his community, as he spent fourteen years running the sideline, coaching his players as the head football coach of Pine Forest […]

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Though You May Stumble: My Rough Road to Fatherhood

“God cannot tempt to virtue as we do to vice. He wants us to learn to walk and must therefore take away His hand; and if only the will to walk is really there, He is pleased even with our stumbles.” ~ C.S. Lewis The quote above gives me incredible hope for all of us. C.S. Lewis is saying that God doesn’t tempt us to good, to a virtue; He doesn’t work that way. He just desires for us to […]

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