It’s just a simple box on the closet shelf of our bedroom, but it holds years of memories.

I first got the idea to incorporate the “Thanksgiving Box” into part of our family holiday tradition when our children were quite young. One year, after our Thanksgiving dinner, I gave each of the children a sheet of paper and a pencil, and I asked them to write down the top five things they were grateful for. This was not a pressured activity to think of the best things, nor was it a competition to see who could come up with the most. It was simply an exercise to write down what God had done for us. Terrie and I wrote our own lists as well. When everyone was finished, we put our lists into the creatively-named “Thanksgiving Box.”

The following year, we repeated the tradition. Only this time, we gave each child their list from the previous year to read before writing a new list. They enjoyed remembering the blessings of the previous year, and their old lists helped to ignite their gratitude for writing a new list. (more…)

The next six weeks are some of the busiest on the calendar. Between now and Christmas, life can easily swallow us up in a whirlwind of holiday preparation and activity. Yet, these busy weeks also hold some of the most sacred moments of the entire year…if we will intentionally look for them.

Thanksgiving, in particular, is easily passed over without us really pausing to give God thanks. Below are five simple suggestions that have helped me use this holiday to draw closer to the Lord through the month of November. (more…)

Perhaps it was ingrained into our minds during elementary school, but there is something about summertime that seems to change people’s thinking. Even adults seem to develop a kind of “recess mentality” that focuses on self and lets responsibility slide.

As a pastor, I’ve noticed that this summer pattern can become one of the “wiles [tricks] of the devil” (Ephesians 6:11) that is used to cause lasting spiritual harm. Sometimes it is helpful in the middle of the summer to pause and evaluate, “Am I maintaining my walk with God?”

Below are five suggestions for enjoying a productive and pleasurable summer while at the same time maintaining your walk with the Lord and your family relationships. (more…)

I had the privilege of praying with Jon and Kristine last night to dedicate our second grandchild—Delanie Lynne—to the Lord. Baby dedications at our church are always special to me, but this one was especially precious. There is nothing like dedicating your own grandchildren!

With the spirit Hannah had many years ago (1 Samuel 1:11, 27–28), Jon and Kristine prayed months ago, “Lord, if You give us a child, we will give that child back to You.” I’m thankful for Jon and Kristine’s commitment to raise Delanie for the Lord.

Delanie’s name means “victorious,” and we look forward to the day when she finds her true victory in Christ by trusting Him as her Saviour. We are praying that she will be saved at an early age. (more…)

My friend, Pastor Dave Teis, has pastored for more than thirty years in Las Vegas, Nevada. What I most respect about Pastor Teis is the fact that all of his grown children are walking in the truth and serving in our Lord’s work, despite being raised in “Sin City.” This, of course, is due to godly upbringing, family devotions, and consistent parenting. But I believe there is another reason his family turned out well: Pastor Teis knows how to have fun with his family.

Too many fundamental pastors have forgotten the “fun” in fundamental.

Often, through his thirty years of pastoring, Brother Teis has taken his family out of Sin City and down to Mickey’s Town for a day or two of family fun. (Rumor has it that there is even a paver in the Teis family name at the entry to the Park.)

We recently had a great day with our children and two grandchildren at Disneyland. (We got there as the Teises were heading back to Vegas.) (more…)