Last night, Rachel and I were discussing the notion that how a person spends their time really says a lot about that person. Take me for instance: for over a decade, I have spent my free time 1) writing faith-based blogs 2) learning guitar and 3) working out. These pursuits were important to me, and even though they involved a good deal of effort, I enjoyed them. I felt they ...
Before my little girl Maya was born, I remember praying so very hard for her to have perfect health. Not just every time we went to the OB/GYN for another sonogram, and not just on labor day, but every night as far as I can remember. I just begged God for her to come out healthy. It was the same with my little boy Ravi. I prayed so hard for ...
I have always been extremely sensitive to those less fortunate than me. I think this started when my family took me to see our relatives in India when I was ten. On this trip, my eyes were painfully opened to so many living in abject poverty in that low-income country. I remember seeing homeless children wearing torn, dirty rags as their clothing coming up to our car asking for money ...
Do you know that song “Satisfied” in the musical Hamilton that occurs about halfway through the first act? It’s sung by Angelica Schuyler, who is captivated by Alexander at the same time that her sister Eliza becomes totally smitten with him – at a party where they first all meet. It is a phenomenal song, and it’s worth listening to if you haven’t heard it. The lyrics depict how Angelica ...
I am not going to lie – I definitely do it. I compare myself to other men. I’ve been thinking a lot about this recently and just wanted to get to the bottom of my motives. Just to sort of check the state of my heart. For sure, I am not wishing ill towards them, or feeling some type of bitter jealousy. I am just taking stock of the men ...
To this day, baseball is my favorite sport. And I’m thankful for the opportunity to play organized baseball when I was young – even though I wasn’t very good at all. For 4-7 year-old kids, Tee Ball is the best way to get acclimated to swinging a bat, running the base paths (in the right order), using a glove, and throwing the ball to your teammates. I don’t think I ...
Probably like every other kid in the entire world, my girl and boy love sweets. Maya is known to say “I don’t WANT food, I want treats and snacks and sweets!!” I just shake my head in exasperation. As parents, we obviously desire that our children eat healthy food as much as possible. We’re not crazy about this, and Rachel will tell you that I’m kind of a “sugar daddy” ...
Everyone who hears that we have a three-year-old and a one-year-old tells us that “they grow up so quickly” and to “take time to enjoy these moments” because they will be gone before we know it. That makes sense; it’s truly shocking how life seems to speed up as we get older. And those of you who know me know that I’m super intentional about everything, and keep trying to ...
I met Rachel in 2013 while volunteering at a summer camp in Banner Elk, North Carolina. According to her, she started falling in love with me after seeing how I was with kids: playful, carefree, easygoing, undistracted, fully present, joyful, silly, and super cute. That same year, she went to Ecuador for six months to serve at an orphanage, and I visited her during Christmas break. We had an amazing ...
Do you find yourself asking this question? Maybe just to yourself, in your head? Or maybe, if you’re feeling vulnerable enough, to someone you know who won’t judge you? “What is the point?” I feel like everyone wonders this at some stage or the other. I know I’ve gone through seasons of life where every day – even multiple times a day – I would ask myself that same question. ...