I want to die young, at a ripe old age. I want to always take new ground, risk new ministry ideas, sow seeds into personal pursuits, and search for creative ways to bring the gospel into our culture. But honestly, it’s not an easy assignment. By natural affect, life tightens around you, constricting interests, suffocating…
Thirty Years Later…
During our first assignment with Cru, Ginnette and I lived in an apartment over a feed store in a cute little town called Excelsior, MN, a western suburb of Minneapolis. Our weekly date night cost three bucks, and very little shoe leather. (Seven steps to the left of our door—dollar theater, followed by a shared…
It’s Time to Re-Enlist!
“Someone pushed her!” The doors to the subway car had just opened. People were screaming, running, and staring wildly under the train. I paused in the midst of it all, not sure why, but then started to talk with a young man. “I was standing right here, and someone pushed her,” he said. He was…
The Eyes of a Stranger on an Uptown Train
I settled into a copy of the sports page of the Daily News, plucked from an empty seat. At Fulton I looked up when I heard a gasp, and saw a man entering the subway car, the people around him stepping back and away, their eyes held wide like a shutter, peering at a dark…
Two Letters And A Greasy Burger Bag
It was early morning, July 17th 1978. I had just been told by a state police officer to get off the interstate. No hitch hiking allowed. Out of options, I walked a mile on a service road, hopped the fence, and stood on the gravel berm holding out my thumb. I had never prayed in…
The Myterious Power of Secrets
You didn’t ask, but I’m going to tell. “I build relationships through evangelism, rather than for evangelism. Am I saying that I take the first opportunity to share Christ with perfect strangers? Yes, most of the time. Does it feel awkward at first, like I’m about to fall off a cliff? Almost, every time. What…
Withering Indifference
From my peripheral I noticed someone leaning across the isle of the airplane. I turned to see a woman looking at the Bible on my lap. “How do you do it,” she asked? “Do what?” I responded, blinking into focus this unexpected intrusion. “You must love to do that, study I mean.” “Yea,” I admitted….
Candlewicks
Light will close its eyes today, And children like candlewicks Burned too low, will cease their play Crawl on hands and knees, Stretch arms and beg….’please;’ Up, up upon a chair, To be hugged at daddy’s side. Angels who creep on tiptoe Silently clamor for a peek, Stumble and laugh, filling empty spaces; Gently brush…
Lean…Splash…Grumble!
Resolutions and sunfish sailboats have common frustrations. Both are nearly impossible when the wind blows contrary. Even with a steady breeze, whenever I’ve tried to skipper a sunfish, the sail collects more water than wind. I push the rudder down, hoping it will magically correct over compensation, only to watch the sail tilt too steeply…then splash!…
Abdullah, my Friend I Never Knew
My friend and neighbor, Abdullah passed away last week. The email bearing the sad news said he had been in the hospital for a couple weeks before succumbing to leukemia. He died a lot like he lived, with a lot of dignity. He was the first person I met on Hancock Street, and literally the last…
No-Pause People
No-pause people! You know what I mean. The kind of people who say, “ready, fire, aim!” They drive to the basket, never dishing the ball, full body contact people, who take the hill, while others ponder it. They are impulsive, or repulsive depending on your mood, with a whole lot of unpredictable thrown in for good…
Hand Signals
“Tomorrow, when you spot a young person, move next to them, and be friendly. Watch what I will do!’ It was a winter evening in the attic. Cold like a meat locker. Bundled up in a comforter, I watched my breath rise like steam off a city street. A candle flickered in front of me,…
To Sir, with love 