Rick Nier...Woo!

My wife talked me into it. She said they needed a swing set. And I believed her. She said the kids would love it. It would keep them occupied. It would keep them in our back yard. And since I had tore down their previous metal set (circa 1992) when we moved, I felt compelled. So we purchased a swing set that came in pieces delivered in three big boxes. We spent many hours sorting wood and nuts and bolts. I learned a new language known as written direction, probably jotted down by the last guy to ever successfully build this apparatus, one that Columbus might have been able to sail over on. Then the building began. I read and I studied and I hammered and I drilled. I measured and I twisted and I cried and I wiped sweat from my brow. The first 146 steps went well, but did not produce anything that actually looked like a swing set.* Entering the thirteenth hour of physical labor, with sweat pouring and appendages lost*, I was getting close. The kids were getting antsy, as the middle sect...

It was an interesting twist when MTV took relationships and over-sexualized everything. We in the Church argued that they were twisting what God intended for men and women. Then, subtly, we began to use what MTV offered as a framework for relationships. Guy/Girl relationships all became filtered through what we were scared to let happen. This book asks the question; what would happen if we started over with a Biblical definition instead of our society's definition? There is a lot of blame, if not all the blame, placed on Freud, who definitely had mommy issues. Freud sexualized all relationships, both cross-gender and same gender. Thanks Sigmund! This book goes on to describe a bit of Church history and give several examples of purely platonic friendships that would be looked at with great suspicion in our current culture. But simply because we have issues does not mean that everyone has issues, right? The question should be asked; if we view marriage as the epitome of relationships...

What would you do if you heard God telling you to go share your faith with the biggest bully you've ever seen? Oh, and God warned you ahead of time that the bully would cause you severe pain. Would you still listen? What if, after picking your teeth up from the ground, God asked you to go share your faith again? Same bully. Same result. Lots of pain. What kind of conversation would you start having with God? That's what I wonder about the prophet Hosea. He's told to go take an adulterous woman for a wife. 'Oh, thanks God, a wife...what kind again?' I never want to be accused of taking a sermon illustration too far again. Hosea does what he's told and goes and finds Gomer. First, what kind of female name is Gomer? Second, can you imagine the proposal? 'You seem like the cheating kind...how about we give it a go?' The sermon illustration that is Hosea's marriage continues as kids come and are named. They have a daughter, which Hosea is instructed to ca...

I must admit I'm somewhat fascinated by King Ahab of Old Testament Israel. Maybe it's similar to my fascination with the early auditions of American Idol. The worse they sound, the more I laugh. I think Ahab's reign over Israel was like one long, horrible Idol audition. If ever there had been a competition to find the next king of Israel, Ahab would probably fall somewhere between William Hung and that guy who sand 'Pants on the Ground'. Is it just me, or is Ahab that guy at the party who's only there because he's hosting the party. Like the guy that never realized what he had or what part he should be playing. Lest we forget, this is the king who let his wife do all the hard work, though most of that work was sinful; 1 Kings 19:1-2, 1 Kings 21:8-14. But maybe Ahab was more unlucky than evil. After all, he did know how to play people. When he & Jehoshaphat went into war together, Ahab convinced his good buddy Jehoshaphat (king of Judah) that he should we...

One of my favorite lines in the old movie City Slickers 2 comes when all the guys are out in the middle of the wilderness and Duke Washburn says he can tell his dad has been there. (For those who have not seen it, or have forgotten, they are all out in the wilderness looking for the Washburn treasure, which Duke's dad hid.) Two of the city slickers, Phil and Mitch, start having a conversation about this. Phil: How can you tell your dad's been here? Mitch: It's just like how we always knew when dad had been in the bathroom. Well, I'm a dad now. I want to say this appropriately for all my internet fan out there. Sometimes I am guilty of passing on biological unfriendliness. I suppose everyone does, but my 3-year old, never at a loss for being cute, experienced this more closely than I would have intended the other day. I let one fly, and much like a burglar, I fled the scene. 30 seonds later my wife is gagging while my 3-year old calmly states, 'I can feel it on my c...

I wish I had a wife like King Ahab of Israel. Not only is Jezebel a fine sounding name for a young lady, but this woman knew how to get things done. You can read about one of her greatest hits in 1 Kings 21. It appears that Ahab had nothing better to do than find new places to garden. He must really like to plant and eat vegetables, because he even went so far as to ask a fellow countryman to give up his family's inheritance to do so. When the guy responded that the Ahab was a whack-job, Ahab went back home and pouted. But since his mommy wasn't around to cry to, he cried to his wife Jezebel. My wife does many great things, but Jezebel took matters into her own hands. Forging the king's signature, she lies and cheats and has Naboth (the owner of the coveted garden) murdered. Voila! Free garden for Ahab! Never mind that Elijah the prophet was sent to condemn Ahab and Jezebel for this incident. When you can find the right land and get tomatoes to ripen just so, consequences d...

This is a Sponsored Post written by me on behalf of IZEA . All opinions are 100% mine. Are you kidding me? I could get paid for this? That hardly seems fair to you the reader, but then again, I'm not stopping you from blogging for years, coming up with original ideas and then discovering different ways to get apid for doing so. Am I? What I am doing is telling you about my experience. While I do, let me throw out some props for my friend Stevan Sheets , where I found out about this opportunity. He is often leading the way for me to follow. But since he is a pastor, I trust him. And since I am also a pastor, you can trust me. The sign up for this was quick and easy, even when proving ownership of my blog. Sign up for SocialSpark ">here . SocialSpark There are obviously some requirements, but nothing invasive, making this much easier than many of my trips to the doctor. Blog and make money. It only makes sense. See for yourself.

If you enjoy snarky, I have found your role model. If sarcasm is your thing (to deliver or to receive) then Micaiah is your guy. His story is found in 1 Kings 22. The story involves King Ahab, who has to be the poster-child for retarded kings of Israel. (I may devote a whole week to Ahab just to fit in all his shortcomings.) King Ahab is teaming up with King Jehoshaphat to attack the Arameans. They get the 400 whatever-you-say prophets of Israel to give God's blessing on the mission. But King Jehoshaphat sees that they're a bunch of weasels, so he asks for a true prophet. Enter Micaiah. Micaiah is encouraged to go with the flow. It's at this point that I'd love to see the interaction on YouTube. Words do not do this scene justice, but picture this; Micaiah enters the room where both kings are waiting and he repeats the refrain form the other 400 prophets, "Attack and be victorious for the Lord will give it into the king's hand" (1 Kings 22:15b). Ahab's...

Granted, I'm a pastor. I have Type-A tendencies. Ok, my tendencies border on freakish OCD behavior patterns, but... Few things bother me more than the Facebook 'maybe'. I suppose I could go on and on about the grey areas of our society and the refusal of people to accept absolute standards. I could discuss the great need of people to accept that what is wrong for one person is likely wrong for everyone. I should certainly be concerned about mentioning that someone might have sin in their life. But I don't believe the Facebook 'maybe' is quite sin. Perhaps if I were coming up with new sins, I would add this to the list. But alas... Some might think the Facebook 'maybe' did not exist prior to the Internet, but they would be wrong. When I was in high school and asked a girl out on a date, I would normally be told that if they had no other plans, if nobody else called them, if there was nothing good on television and their hair did not need washing, then per...

It really does not matter what kind of day it has been. Once the day turns to bedtime, thirst and giggles make their appearance. In my home I have an 8, 6 and 3 year old. Every bedtime routine is the same. Baths (if needed), last drink, last snack, brush teeth, pj's, prayer and good night. But despite the activities or length of the day, the children have, without my blessing, added a few items to their to-do list. This would include (but not be limited to) coming back out for one more last drink, one more hug, one more kiss, one more question, one more joke, five more questions or another trip to the bathroom. I've tried discipline, bribery, moving bedtime back, moving bedtime forward. Apparently they will end up tiring and falling asleep at least a half an hour after when I wanted to last see them for the day. Oh. It also does not matter what kind of day it has been at work. Once the hours turn past when God wanted to be awake, I mention that the teens should be tired. After ...

I am quite certain that my children have learned it from me. Whether I should be proud or not is a discussion for another day, but when my children choose sarcasm over a straight answer, I can’t get mad at them. They’ve seen it modeled and they are learning the trade. Because, to me, the only thing funnier than imagining what kids will say in response to outlandish statements is actually finding out. There’s only one way to find out. Luke: How long until Mommy comes home? Me: One week. Luke: But…? How…? Why? Me: She’ll be home in 5 minutes. Jacie: Can I have earrings? Me: Sure, anything for my little princess. (But Jacie is catching on to how sarcasm works.) Jacie: Really? Me: No. It goes both ways. When I ask Jacie how much homework she has, she may respond with ‘5 billion pages’ or a blank look as if she’s never heard the word before. And as I think about this, I realize that at times the Bible uses language that we’re not meant to take literally. Consider Hebrews 10:24. And let us...

A friend gave me a copy of Nathan Foster's book Wisdom Chaser . I was interested for two reasons. First, he is the son of Richard Foster. While it may not have been the most exciting read, Celebration of Disicipline was a good read. Second, he's a prof at Spring Arbor University, my alma mater. This book proved to be a quick and easy read with (wait for it) lots of wisdom. In it, Nathan recounts a decade of stories where he climbed mountains in Colorado (the fourteeners) with his dad. As they begin, they do not have the greatest of relationships, but a few fourteeners later, that seems to be well resolved. The story-reveals-truth style of writing is nice, but the use of shock value I found distracting. Color me prude if you wish, but I found his choice of verbal crassness unnecessary. It took me away from what he was attempting to communicate and left me wondering why he chose to use those words. Understand that I am not perfect in this area and I truly understand the sometimes...

I was with a group of teens at Taco Bell. This is good because I enjoy teens and tacos (not necessarily in that order). One of the teens dropped a quarter in the Coin Drop Game and the coin miraculously fell on the bottom platform. My eyes got big when I saw this because I think that wins you a prize of all-you-can-eat tacos or $5, whichever is greater. But before I could even say congratulations, this teen spun the knob that controls the platforms, sending the quarter flying off the platform. He did all this while asking, 'What am I supposed to do here?' My jaw dropped and all the other teens took turns telling him how not-awesome that was. I wish I were joking. I've never actually seen anyone win that. This unnamed teenager tried, without hope, to repeat his lost good fortune. Sadly, he is not alone. I think many of us walk blindly through life wondering what we're supposed to be doing. We do this and try that and wonder why life works the way it does. We're obliv...