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 ...
I try to live my life with the “faith of a child” that Jesus talks about – a faith that is innocent, full, expectant, and without suspicion or distrust in God’s goodness. Of course, this isn’t easy to do given the unending challenges and struggles that we all face while living out the days He’s given us. However, I have found that nothing is more important, which is why that ...
Tests are not fun. Really, they are the opposite of fun. Many nights in high school, I remember staying on the phone into the early morning hours with various friends trying to cram for an exam the next day in Calc, or Chem, or European History. And then I couldn’t sleep well because of the anxiety of it all. I had a good grasp of the material, but they were ...
I was thinking yesterday about the occurrence of crappy things in our lives. Like, how sometimes it feels so random and arbitrary when they come along. Everything is going along pretty swimmingly, your heart and relationships and walk with God feel like it’s in a good place, and then BAM! Something awful happens. And it throws you for a loop not just because it was unexpected, but also because it ...
Rachel made me a cape! A full-sized, heavy, satiny, superhero cape! I am totally shocked and bowled over by how freaking awesome it is! This is the best gift I have ever received in my entire life! I’ve honestly always wanted a cape, ever since I saw the original Superman with Christopher Reeve. We both had black hair, and wore glasses, and were a bit nerdy. Clark Kent obviously had ...
I am in a deep, dark valley. I know that sounds really dramatic, but that is my reality. The current season of my life has been marked by incredible futility. Pretty much everything I am trying to do right now is met with failure. As an example, I’ve been wanting to find a mentor – praying about it, reaching out to people, seeking out connections, making sure it’s not contrived ...
Rachel adores The Sound of Music. Personally, I knew all of the songs from as far back as I can remember (I am pretty sure my parents had me watch it when I was seven), but I really didn’t remember the storyline. I mean, I remembered a nun, a bunch of cute kids, some Nazis, and a LOT of singing. But that’s really it. Well, on our recent trip backpacking ...
One of the very generous gifts Sameer and I received for our marriage last year was a week-long trip to St. Thomas. Sameer had to continue work remotely so it turned into a kind of solo retreat for me most of the time. As a new bride, I thought it would tear my heart into pieces to be on my own sometimes, but it turned into a time of deep ...
Living only a few miles from the ocean in Southeast Florida, I have the opportunity to enjoy it all the time. I appreciate it for many of the same qualities that others do: its power, vastness, rhythmic regularity, blueness, and beauty. What I love most, though, is taking it in at night. The crowds are gone, it’s peaceful, and the darkness all around me adds an element of mystery and ...
So there was this one time where I really liked a particular girl. It was way back in 2005. She was all wrong for me, but I still wanted it to work, and gave it my all because I thought it just might. I would be sweet and endearing and thoughtful. I would demonstrate in meaningful ways how much I cared about her and her family. I would put in ...