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Category: Life

A Pen-Pal in the Philippines

It was a Sunday night in high school. And even though I was sitting in the back pew with my buddies, it was a day that would change my life forever. We had chosen these seats, the farthest possible away from the action because there was a guest speaker from out of town. A missionary who had asked if he could come preach in Chicago because they happened to be in town, even though most of his supporters were out West. My dad had offered his pulpit. I knew the missionary sermon all too well. Matthew 28… Great Commission… pictures of the mission field… challenge to pray, give, or go. I probably could have stepped in if he’d gotten a sore throat and needed me to. But then, I saw it – the picture of his family – and heard him talking about his daughter, Sara. I had just returned from a mission trip to Honduras the week before and perked up. (She was cute.) As her dad talked about some of the dangers they had faced as a family – including hiding her in a hidden compartment when soldiers came through the neighborhood – my buddies and I all…

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Tell kids you LIKE them… it means more to them than “I love you.”

Many years ago, I was visiting with family and having fun tussling with one of my nephews who was about seven years old at the time. He was a kid I only got to see a few times a year, but we were pretty close. One of our favorite games was “Pillow Monster.” I would pile pillows on top of him while he was on the couch, and then “attack” the pile of pillows. I would “never notic” that he had escaped from under the pile as I trashed the pillows, jumping up and down on them pretending I was attacking him. He would laugh hysterically completely unaware that I could hear him behind me, knowing he wasn’t under the pile of pillows. Then, he would cover me in pillows and jump on the pillows, but of course, I wouldn’t be able to escape! It always ended in an exhausted heap of hugs to watch TV or something more relaxing. One time as we settled down to catch our breath, I blurted out, “Michael, I love you.” His response surprised me but had a profound impact on me. He said, “Uncle Karl, of course you love me. You’re my uncle.…

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A Prisoner to Ministry?

As the year comes to a close, are you starting to make plans for next year? We all want next year to be better than this year, right? I know I do! In the midst of celebrating Christmas and enjoying friends and family and hopefully a little bit of downtime, this is the perfect time to start to think ahead to make some plans for the new year! Do you ever feel like a prisoner to ministry? Let me introduce you to a video training that I did many years ago that is as relevant today as a day I filmed it. It was the final installment in a five-part Leadership Lab training series. As we head into a new year, it would be a great investment to pick up this fifth segment, Define, Refine and Shine, and if you are feeling the early stages of burn out – pick up part one too, First Things First I have been to that place where you feel trapped and overwhelmed – feeling like you secretly hate what you love because it’s just too much. You can’t blame your boss, your church, your spouse, or anyone or anything external. Control starts within.…

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100 Ways to Show Your Kids LOVE!

Here are 100 EASY (and FUN) ways to show your kids you LOVE them!   1. Say “I love you” often. 2. Say “I like you” as well. (Like is optional!) 3. Pay attention to them when they are talking to you. 4. Sit with them and read stories together. 5. Ask what the best part of their day has been. 6. Sing worship songs with them. 7. Play along with them, whether it is blocks, coloring or video games. 8. Read a Bible Story together. 9. Tell them that you love them no matter what. 10. If you are wrong, say you are sorry. 11. Play in the rain and splash in the puddles together. 12. Never compare them to other children. Assure them that they are the best “them” there is and ever will be. 13. Make paper airplanes together. Have fun measuring distance and time flight duration! 14. Wrestle and roll on the floor with them. 15. Laugh and giggle about silly things with them. 16. Each time you greet your child, touch them. It communicates warmth and love. 17. Tell your child each day that you are so thankful to have them. 18. Go into detail…

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Jedi Secret to Winning in Life!

From the 2005 Archives, but still true today! In the little free time I’ve had lately, I’ve been working on becoming a Jedi in my Star Wars Jedi GameBoy game. You get to be Luke and travel through the three original classic SW movies – I’m on the Moon of Endor now. (Only bummer is, it won’t let me kill ewoks with my light saber, like they are invincible – oh, yeah, they are on MY side!) The hardest part was getting out of Jabba’s Palace! I was on the same level for DAYS – there was this point where an insane amount of Gamorrean Guards would attack, all throwing axes at me – and no amount of force powers could get me through! I would super run, super jump, force push, even the double flip with saber flying, but they would eventually wear me down and my little Luke would drop to his knees, doubled over, hands holding his stomach like he got food poisoning, EVERY time. I finally stooped to asking a kid for help but I couldn’t decipher his advice, he just kept saying, “After you walk in…” and commented on how easy that level was. FInally,…

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