Posts with the tag “worship”

What does the ideal personality look like to you? Is there a single word that comes to mind?Now, before we dive in, let’s set the record straight: I don’t believe there’s an ideal one-size-fits-all pe...  Read More

One of my favorite times every Spring is the day we spread new mulch in our yard. Since I love getting a good deal, I typically wait until I can buy it for $2 per bag. And this season didn’t disappoin...  Read More

Dallas and I were pumped as we made our way to GEHA Arrowhead Stadium for the showdown between Inter Miami and Sporting Kansas City. But let’s be real, we were really there for one reason – to catch a...  Read More

A few weeks ago, my youngest son Ian invited me to join him for “Doughnuts with Dad” at his school. I must admit, the prospect of waking up early to hang out in a cafeteria filled with elementary scho...  Read More

Easter Sunday breathes new life into us for many reasons. Personally, it started with seeing our New Life CityChurch family and worshipping together. This was truly a blessed time for worship and buil...  Read More

As I walked into our living room a week ago and saw my college wrestling coach Ben Peterson, the memories flooded back—sweat-drenched practices, hard-fought victories, and his life-changing influence....  Read More

This past week has been a whirlwind of activity at the New Life office. It’s almost like watching a team of caffeinated beavers (side note: we also have a new coffee maker) on a mission to turn the pl...  Read More

Over the past few days, my newsfeed has been popping with NFL teams making moves by trading, signing, and releasing football players. Although I’ve never had to deal with this sort of stress, every na...  Read More

Earlier today, my brother Todd and I and Dallas drove over to Council Bluffs, IA to watch my nephew compete in the Junior College National wrestling tournament. At the beginning of the day, there were...  Read More

What makes you happy?There are plenty of things that make me happy.This weather makes me happy – plus Punxsutawney Phil didn’t see his shadow. Early Spring is on the way! And if you want to get a litt...  Read More

This past week, Isaiah entered his first wrestling tournament. This is a pretty big deal in our household. I started wrestling about the same time I learned how to crawl and went through college…also…...  Read More

Today we are headed back to Kansas City after spending several days with family to begin 2024 in Florida. We loved soaking in some sunshine and warmer weather while relaxing and spending time together...  Read More

A few minutes ago, I was putting some final touches on my sermon for Sunday. I want to end our Advent Series, “Embracing Eternity” from the Psalms well. I also want to provide some practical ways to b...  Read More

Christmas is a time for favorite traditions.If you are like me, you probably have some favorite Christmas songs (Gloria in Excelsis Deo-sung loudly in my best dad voice 😊)…favorite Christmas movies (D...  Read More

This past week, we were able to attend the elementary Christmas program at Isaiah and Ian’s school.To be honest, after five kids, the elementary program is typically one of my least favorite things to...  Read More

Recently we were driving in the car, going back and forth about who gets “Aux” (the person who gets to pick the songs). In case you are wondering, everyone in our family is competitive, so “Aux” can b...  Read More

Welcome to the first day of December! I had a conversation with someone earlier today, and it struck me how, during this season, time seems to slip away, and suddenly Christmas is upon us.The calendar...  Read More

Yesterday, while stuffing our faces 😊 with Thanksgiving dinner, we randomly picked “Thanksgiving conversation prompts” from a bowl and then went around the table.My particular prompt was, “What’s the ...  Read More

I love experiencing a group of people who are unified…totally locked in with each other…moving toward a common goal…a big goal…and then experiencing a once-in-a-generation win.Don’t you?Consider “Mira...  Read More

It’s been a week since we observed Daylight Savings Time.We did get an extra hour of sleep, however, we’ve also lost an hour of daylight….every…single…day.As we were driving home just past 6 pm today,...  Read More

This past week, our second daughter, Sophia was able to fly a plane for the first time. She is a Freshman at the University of Central Missouri where she is on the soccer team and also studying to bec...  Read More

A few days ago, I was able to take our two youngest boys to Shelter KC to share in the evening chapel service. When possible, I love to include our kids in service opportunities, so the plan was to in...  Read More

We are in a seasonal sweet spot! Fall is my favorite time of the year.Sweatshirts and pumpkin spice lattes. Football and Hot Apple Cider and Bonfires. It seems like only recently that we were navigati...  Read More

This week, Leigh-Ann and I reached a new milestone in life…our oldest daughter turned 22.It seems like just yesterday that we were at St. Mary’s hospital for her birth. It was certainly not easy…(I ha...  Read More

Have you ever gone back and visited a place where you built fond memories and when you arrived….it was much smaller than you remembered?This past summer our family took a ride East on I-70 out to a pl...  Read More

Yogi Berra, the author of some of my favorite quotes had a way of stating the obvious….obviously!He was born in St. Louis and grew up in a working-class neighborhood. He loved baseball and became one ...  Read More

About three months ago, I opened the garage door bright and early on a Sunday morning…and noticed something was different…but not sure what it was……it took a few seconds….and then I realized there was...  Read More

Earlier this week our oldest daughter, Alexa came home to shadow a physician as a part of her preparation for the future. She left right after an early morning soccer practice and drove home. Her tire...  Read More

Last week, I got to take Isaiah out of town for some 1 on 1 time. With five kids it can be tough to offer individual attention to our children, however, we know it’s important, so Leigh-Ann and I do o...  Read More

This rain has been great, but it’s also creating more work. I would much rather look at green grass but brown grass requires less maintenance 😊.This past Monday, Ian was helping me mow the back yard a...  Read More

Last Saturday evening, I was waiting for one of the boy’s soccer games to begin and was watching some really young girls play, but I couldn’t stop watching the parents.It was entertaining to see what ...  Read More

Several weeks ago, while on vacation, most of our family took a leap of faith. For more than a decade while vacationing on Table Rock Lake, we have watched people jump off a cliff. And for more than a...  Read More

Several weeks ago, while on vacation, we were waiting for a shuttle and several of us noticed a beautiful tree. It was night time and most of the light was coming from the moon, although it was a clea...  Read More

Over the past few days about 20-25 teens and leaders have been living at New Life, serving the city, eating a lot, and sleeping a little.Several years ago our church began the tradition of serving rig...  Read More

Over the past few years, our family has started a tradition of mini-golfing while on vacation. We love the challenge of putting the golf ball around obstacles, through tight spots, up and down hills, ...  Read More

For the past several days our family has been on vacation in Branson, MO and we’ve actually enjoyed the hot, steamy weather because we’ve spent most of our time at one of the pools or on the lazy rive...  Read More

About thirteen years ago, God brought Dave and Karen Robinson to Leigh-Ann and me. Their friendship has changed our lives and ministry…in a really good way 😊.We’ve served in the city together, listeni...  Read More

Leigh-Ann, Dallas, and Sophie left last night to travel to St. Louis for Sophia’s final club soccer tournament. Her next games will be in college.Alexa, Isaiah, Ian, and I stayed home! 😊After eating s...  Read More

Today is our annual celebration of Leigh-Ann’s journey around the sun. We’ve officially been married for more than half of her life.Wow! I still remember the first time we locked eyes….there was certa...  Read More

For the past few days, I’ve been wearing sunglasses.The sun is bright, and I want to protect my eyes from ultraviolet light…but that’s not really why I’m wearing sunglasses.I’ve realized it’s easier t...  Read More