Most nights my family goes through the same rituals -  the kids are herded up the stairs (which isn't easy... they always have some excuse for why they need to do this or that) they brush their teeth, put on their pj's, and climb into…

Ok, Ok... so this is a shameless plug.  Guilty.  You'll have to cut me some slack - I've been planning a conference that will be held at Dordt College this November on the topic of Christianity and Popular Culture.  Last spring, with the help of…

I've been humming this song all week long.  Actually, I've just been humming the chorus - I admit, I don't know the rest.  It all stems from a conversation I had with a colleague.  Classes have started at Dordt and we were talking about the…

Imagine you if you had a violent drug dealer chained to a pole in your basement - the result of circumstances that got out of control.  You have two choices: let the guy go after he promises not to take revenge for having him chained…

A few weeks  back I was part of a friendly argument while partaking of some good food and cold beer. The argument was political - which around here means the argument was religious. Living in smack dab in the middle of Republican country means that…

Yesterday afternoon I went to see The Dark Knight Rises.  It was a surreal experience - watching the first 20-30 minutes of the film thinking about what happened in Colorado the night before.  I kept thinking that this is what they were watching - unaware…

Jerry: We're not gay!... not that there's anything wrong with that. George:  No, of course not. Jerry:  I mean it's fine if that's who you are. George:  Absolutely! Jerry:  I mean I have many gay friends.  George:  My father's gay. The above dialogue is from…

I enjoy arguing about politics with my Canadian friends.  It doesn't matter the topic - it always comes back to George W. Bush. Never mind that in the arena of foreign policy President Obama has out Bushed Bush (baseball cards anyone?) - if there is…

This past week my family and I tagged along with the young people from church on a work project in Denver, Colorado.  It didn't start out very well... our honda van broke down on I-80 near Ogallaga, NE in the middle of a construction zone.…