'Tis the season to think of family; immediate, close in, not-so-close in, added in by marriage or adoption, and those considered part of the family even without kin relationships. These folks are Mishpochah – Yiddish for family...

Mishpaha is the Hebrew word for family.

I am the firstborn of four children: Jax, Dirk and Jill. I do not know why, but I was always ashamed of having so many siblings. I just never really knew a lot of families our size. My dad had a sister, and my mom had two brothers, so I felt that theirs were the norm...

I am a baseball fan, and one of my favorite movies is “The Field of Dreams.” As a kid growing up in Chicago, my family once made a trip out to the place where they filmed that movie. It was a lot of fun to be there as a kid and feel the movie come to life. And to experience the sport I played took on a new meaning. That, however, moves into a common question that I sometimes get asked as a missionary and pastor. People will occasionally ask, “why would you want to bring the Gospel to those who are not searching for the good news of Jesus Christ? Isn’t that kind of rude?”

On Friday, December 9th, Nancy and I attended a wonderful cantata for congregation and choir call Carols by Heather Sorenson at our church, Zion Lutheran in Walburg, Texas. (This is available on their site for your viewing, too!) The congregation was an integral component of the music by singing along...

When Yeshua walked this earth, he had an incredible impact on thousands of people. Ultimately, he chose twelve in be part of his core group, and from those twelve, he invested most in three, Peter, James and John. These three were brought close into Christ’s inner circle, so that following His ascension, they were the emerging leaders of the nascent church.