There are certain things in life that I continually struggle to describe in full. They are either so big, so complex or so full of emotion that words and pictures just don’t seem to describe them. So instead of trying to really describe those things, I compare them to fireworks. Before I really dive into…
Tag: God
Rely on God in any Situation/S’appuyez sur Dieu en toute Situation
God wants us to rely on Him through our hardships. Whether we lose our job, are persecuted or experience various hard knocks in life, our God loves us and stands with us in every trying situation as he did with Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego. According to Daniel 3:8-30, Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego, captive in Babylon,…
Holy Curiosity
Almost 20 years ago, I was invited over to Bill’s house for dinner because his older sister Judy was in town. I was invited because I knew Judy pretty well, we’d been together on several special occasions and I liked her a lot. When Judy visited, it was always an occasion because she was bigger…
Speaking Out
Do you ever find yourself mulling over or wrestling with a particular topic or question? I have been a part of a covenant group for about two months now. Our covenant group meets on a weekly basis and it gives me the opportunity to have accountability to myself and to God. It is helping me…
My First Rodeo
Recently, college friends of mine were vacationing near Fort Worth. We made plans to get together so I figured this would be the perfect opportunity to finally go to a rodeo at the Stockyards. Throughout the night we saw barrel racing, bull riding, steer wrestling, calf roping and team roping. We had a great time…
Faith in Action
While preparing for this summer’s upcoming mission trips, I have been reflecting a lot on my own mission trip experiences. My first mission trip was the summer after sixth grade and I still remember it quite vividly. This trip came at the end of a children’s leadership program at my church. We spent three years…
Buttercups and Weeds
If you have been on a highway anywhere in North Texas recently, you have likely noticed the pink and white flowers that my grandmother called “buttercups”. During my years of working as a floral designer, I learned that these are actually Evening Primrose (Oenothera speciosus Rosea). They bloom April through June across much of the…
Reconnecting with Family & Friends
After ten long years I recently visited my native country, the Democratic Republic of Congo. It was fun to meet my younger brother’s friends. He would introduce me as “Pastor Joseph Kazadi from the United States,” then he would tell them that I was his big brother. The look of surprise and delight was instant,…
Stretching and Growing
Each year as the fifth graders enter their spring semester, we sense restlessness in Sunday school. It’s a restlessness of wanting independence and yet still needing supervision and guidance. It’s a feeling that something big and exciting is headed their way, with a bit of anxiety about change. The fifth graders know about (and have…
The Journey to Easter
“When the days drew near for him to be taken up, he set his face to go to Jerusalem.”—Luke 9:51 I’m trying to imagine what Jesus might have been thinking as he “set his face” to go to Jerusalem. There’s never been a time in my life when I had to set my face to…
It Was Solved by Walking
I went for a walk yesterday. I will admit the main purpose was to get in more steps. Several of the church staff members are on a team, competing with people from across the United States, for the most number of steps over the period of time set for the challenge. While we are all…
Renovation
Have you noticed? There is a new play structure called a Gaga ball pit in the church playground. This project was simultaneously one of the most exciting and exhausting things that I have been involved in since arriving at FUMC Hurst. It took five adults, eight students and nine hours to build on a day…
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