toddcast

I just got back to my office after a quick stop for a soda and a snack. When the cashier gave me back my change, he rounded it to the nearest nickel. It looks like we're doing away with pennies. For some odd reason, I think that's sad. But it makes sense (pun intended). From what I hear, it costs more to make a penny than what it's worth. Not too long ago, we did away with Pluto as a planet. From what I hear, it was considered too small and had to be downgraded. I don't know why, but I think that's sad too. Just because you're not big enough, you get kicked out of the planet club? Small things just don't get the respect they used to. What kind of world do we live in that eliminates things just because they're little? My sadness is likely attributable to sentimental reasons. I can remember the day when a penny could actually buy you a piece of gum. I remember times when I would scrounge under car seats looking for a few more cents to buy a candy bar...

A Brief Devotional for Offering The Christmas season means shopping. We run out to the stores or, more likely these days, search websites for just the right gift. When they arrive, we hide them away, wrap them up, and place them under the tree. When the gift is opened on Christmas Day—not Christmas Eve—there's been a lot of work put into it, a lot of thought. However, there are times when we're caught off guard, needing a gift for someone we forgot, or maybe someone unexpectedly gives us a gift and we feel the need to reciprocate. This is the perfect scenario for the famous art of regifting. Have you ever done that? You receive a gift you didn't much like, so you stash it away for just a time like this. You run to the closet, pull it off the shelf, wrap it hastily or throw it into a gift bag, and voilà—you have a gift. But here's the thing: you never tell the recipient, "Hey, I just regifted something I didn't want!" Why not? Because part of gift-g...

This Thanksgiving, as 82 million Americans travel to celebrate with family, we can learn something profound from another holiday road trip. In Luke 17:11-19, Jesus is traveling to Jerusalem from Galilee to celebrate Passover and finds himself along the border between Samaria and Galilee when ten lepers cry out to Him for healing. Understanding the context makes this story remarkable. Jews despised Samaritans so intensely that they would add two full days to their journey—23 extra miles—just to avoid passing through Samaritan territory. Yet, as this story unfolds and is clear in the Gospels, Jesus seems unaffected by the social outcasts that so many Jews avoided. When the ten lepers call out for help, Jesus tells them to show themselves to the priests, as required by Old Testament law. Remarkably, they're healed as they obey—before they reach the priests. All ten receive the same miracle. All ten are completely cleansed. But only one returns to thank Jesus. And here's the ...

Well, Happy Halloween. While I certainly am never one to turn away candy, I must admit Halloween is not one of my favorite holidays. I'm somewhat of a scaredy-cat, and all the frights and scares are not my thing. Neither are horror movies or scary stories around the campfire. Add rollercoasters and any type of thrill ride to that list. It may be for some people, but fear is not something I go looking for. Though I may not go looking for it, fear has a way of finding me and, for that matter, all of us. Whether it be the news, personal concerns, family matters, finances, or health worries, it seems like fear has a way of creeping into my life daily. Who needs Halloween when there are "wars and rumors of war" all around us? I find it comforting, though, that the Bible acknowledges that the world we live in often does elicit fear. And it talks about it often. A quick word search reveals that the words "fear" and "afraid" are used almost 500 times in our Bi...

Over the past few weeks, I've been preaching through 1 John—a brief but powerful letter the apostle John wrote in his later years. His audience faced confusion from false teachers who were distorting essential Christian truths. One particularly dangerous idea suggested that knowing God had nothing to do with how we actually lived. At first glance, this seems absurd. But is it really so far-fetched? Consider how often we treat Christian practices—church attendance, Bible reading, prayer—as the goal itself rather than as means to genuine transformation. I catch myself doing this. The rituals become my religion instead of pathways to change. Craig Groeschel captured this tension perfectly in his book title: The Christian Atheist: Believing in God but Living As If He Doesn't Exist. It's entirely possible to maintain all the outward Christian activities while remaining spiritually unchanged. This disconnect likely plagued John's original readers. It certainly affects us tod...

When my daughter and son-in-law traveled abroad recently, they encountered the familiar chorus of street vendors at every tourist destination. Desperate to move their merchandise, these sellers would shout to passersby, "Almost free! Almost free!" The phrase "almost free" is clever marketing, but it reveals an important truth: "almost free” still costs something. Almost free means you'll need to reach for your wallet. Almost free confirms what we've always known—nothing in life comes without a price. My father's wisdom echoes in my mind: "There are no free lunches." From childhood, we learn that everything worthwhile must be earned through effort and payment. This universal understanding makes the Gospel message so revolutionary. When God extends His offer of salvation, He doesn't shout "Almost free!" from the heavens. Instead, He whispers something that defies everything we think we know about how the world works: "Abso...

What started out as a boy's reckless defiance became a lesson in the power of forgiveness and grace. Like many young boys, I dreamed of being a professional athlete. I thought my best chance was Major League Baseball, so day after day I would take my wiffle ball and bat to the backyard, throw the ball in the air, and swing with all my might. If baseball didn't work out, the National Football League was my backup plan. The biggest obstacle to the NFL was that I was not that big, so I set my sights on being a kicker. On many a cold New England winter day I would tee up the football, perfecting my field goal technique. I had a natural set of field goal posts in my yard – the deck of our above-ground pool served as the perfect target with an opening where the ladder led up to the deck's surface. I can't count the number of times I won the Super Bowl with a perfectly placed kick. I recall bragging to my father one day when he came home from work, and although he encouraged m...

Last Sunday I preached about heaven. I love preaching about heaven but I always feel like any description I give falls so far short of what it will actually be like. And I must admit, I have many questions. What exactly will it be like? What will we be doing? Will the bonds we've formed here remain intact?  Heaven, in so many ways is incomprehensible to me but there is one thing I am confident of – it will far exceed any of my expectations. I find it maddening when my expectations fall short of reality. Someone recommends their favorite restaurant and I find it so-so. Someone raves about a movie and I find myself dozing throughout. There have been times when someone would say to me, "You've gotta see this," or "You have to go there," and when I do I wonder what all the hype was all about. Unmet expectations are frustrating. But that will not be the case for heaven. No matter what you or I think, it will be better. I've had that experience at least a coup...

Last spring, I undertook a simple lawn project that would teach me an unexpected lesson about spiritual growth. I planted grass seeds in two different areas of my yard. For the first patch, I prepared the ground by adding nutrient-rich topsoil to the naturally lower terrain. For the second, I simply loosened the existing earth and scattered the seeds. Over the following weeks, I maintained both areas with equal care—watering regularly and watching expectantly for signs of new life. The results, however, were strikingly different. The first section, enriched with additional soil, soon displayed vibrant green shoots pushing through the earth. Week after week, this area flourished with thick, healthy grass. The second patch lagged significantly behind, eventually producing sparse, weaker blades that never quite matched the vitality of their counterparts. The difference, I realized, lay not in my efforts but in the foundation I had provided. The topsoil's promised nutrients—which I had...

I am currently preaching through the life of Israel’s third king, Solomon. As the primary author of Proverbs, he is perhaps best-known for his insight and wisdom. His acquisition of this wisdom is a fascinating and instructive story. Near the beginning of his reign, Solomon fell into a deep sleep. In his dream, the Lord appeared with an extraordinary proposition: "Ask for whatever you want me to give you." Imagine that moment—a divine blank check, an opportunity to request anything the heart desires. Many would have seized this chance for personal gain—wealth beyond measure, long life, victory over enemies. Yet Solomon's response revealed his true character. "I am only a little child," he confessed, acknowledging his inadequacy for the task at hand. "Give your servant a discerning heart to govern your people and to distinguish between right and wrong" God was pleased. Not only did He grant Solomon unparalleled wisdom, but He also added what Solomon did...

Spring is here and with spring comes baseball season. Opening day is on the same level as a national holiday for me. From my youth I have been a huge baseball fan, and having grown up near Boston, I have forever been and will forever be a Red Sox fan. Yet living in Texas, I don't have a lot of fellow BoSox fans to celebrate with or commiserate with, but when I do meet one, I sense this instant bond. I love chatting with other like-minded fans, talking about their favorite players, fond memories, and how this season will play out. I'm always on the lookout for someone wearing a Red Sox hat or jersey and initiating a good baseball conversation. But sometimes it doesn't always work out the way I would hope. On more than one occasion I have encountered someone wearing Red Sox regalia and begun my spiel only to be interrupted with a response something like this: "Oh, I'm not a Red Sox fan. I just picked up this hat real cheap at a garage sale." As the disappointmen...

It’s been cold outside! Last week I walked into the office and commented that it's not fair that we have to suffer through the hot Texoma summers AND these sub-freezing temperatures. But here in Texas the snow and ice quickly melt away—except not in some places. On my commute to church there is still a small patch of ice at one particular corner. It's odd that just about everywhere else the snow has seeped into the ground and the patches of ice have been transformed into puddles of water, but not there. And it doesn't take a meteorologist to figure out why. That little used intersection never sees direct sunlight. The trees above block the sun from shining on it and while the ice has melted all around it remains in this small patch of road that never feels the warmth of the sun. We all go through cold and frigid seasons when our souls grow weary. Storms settle in and our hearts can grow cold. But thanks be to God the sun always comes out to thaw even the most frozen of hear...