I confess I do not like the cold. Which is why I do not mind a mild winter. Is there anyone with me? And while I do not like the cold, I do like the opportunity the cold presents. See when it is cold you have the opportunity to get out the warm, fuzzy blankets with the imitation sherpa lining. When it is cold you have the opportunity to make soup, and hot choc...

I recently had a great week! Our family got a little kitty. We named him Heman after an 80's cartoon I grew up with. And Heman is awesome! He plays well, and he is good with our kids. Not only that but he sits on my tummy and purrs. Ahh, good stuff. Beyond the cat I was mowing the lawn, and then out of nowhere my wife offers to finish mowing the lawn for me. Talk about...

By now you have heard about the shooting in Charleston, South Carolina. Dylann Roof after being welcomed into a Bible Study opened fire and killed 9 people at Emanuel AME Church. Among all the other stories to come from this one event, is the powerful story of one man's forgiveness....

I was reading a little about the Tour de France coming up here July 4th. Do you want to guess how many miles long it is? 2,200 miles. That's insane! I was also reading that in order to stay healthy the bikers must eat between 6,000 - 9,000 calories a day. I personally don't know about all that biking, but eating that much sounds like fun....

Does anyone else out there love Disney World? It probably helps that my parents live in Orlando, but I confess I love it. If you've been to the parks, resorts, or cruises they just do things well. Fun for kids of all ages, but just make sure to get your FastPasses online and early they do sell out. Well, go with me on a hypothetical scenario. Let's say you are a parent an...

In the house I grew up in the major celebration at the end of October was...the Reformation. Yep. Now I still went trick or treating, and had a lot of fun going as a football player and a cowboy. But that was the low key event compared to our celebration of the Reformation at church. Halloween and decorating my house with the Luther’s seal painted on the front lawn ...

I remember holding a golf club for the very first time. Baseball was my major sport, but I thought I'd give golf a try. And because of my background in baseball, I had inclinations that were all wrong for golf. I wanted to hold the club like a bat, swing the clubs like a bat, even step into my swing like you do when batting. It was only through teaching and practicing that...

As a child of the 80s I love the movie The Karate Kid. And if you’ve seen the movie who can forget, “wax on, wax off” and “paint the fence.” Mr. Miyagi agrees to train Daniel in the art of Karate, but it seems to Daniel that he is just being given menial chores to do. But Daniel does it. He waxes Mr. Miagi’s cars, paints his fence, and...

I love vending machines. I don’t know if I would have made it through high school without them. I remember getting sodas like Surge and Josta (now relics of the past) and of course Mountain Dew to get me through the day....

Not too long ago we were celebrating the 4th and enjoying fireworks and perhaps the parade in Mokena. Great stuff. During the 4th I look at the blessings of our country and some of the ideals we are founded on like life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. And it seems in this country we are especially striving for the pursuit of happiness, trying to find the formula f...

We all fall down. Here’s 3 famous people who made it big time who first fell. Walt Disney was fired by his newspaper editor who told him he lacked imagination and had no good ideas. ...

I’ll never forget taking my ACT’s. Boy, am I glad that’s over. I have empathy for all our Lincolnway students who may be stressed out over that massive test. For me, my goal in taking the ACT’s was simple - I needed to get a 24 or better. 24 was all that was required for the college I was looking to get into. 24 was it. The good thing is I did g...

Driving last week sure was crazy. Cold and snow equal slipping and sliding, at least for my small car. I was driving home on the ramp for I-355 when I saw a car stuck way down off the onramp. I looked at the amount of snow the car was suck in, and the distance from the road, and the steep incline to get back up and I wondered, "How is that car ever going to get unstuck...

As we go through various seasons of life change continues, and at one point or another wee all ask, "will I continue to have what I need?"...

So the kids are back in school. Sports activities, homework, and busy days with late nights ramp up. Along with that various tensions can also ramp up - whether it be a lack of patience as parents, or lack of respect as kids. Itʼs a time when we can lose sight of what we should strive for in a family as we tend to just survive another week....

God offers us the same. What if we too found our happiness wrapped up in the things that makes God happy? How would life be different? ...

Do you think God is looking for a faith with limits? ...

Do I have any ʻwhat ifʼ readers here in Frankfort? Any people who commonly think of the ʻwhat ifʼ scenarios that can stop you from starting or doing something. Letʼs think of some very common ʻwhat ifʼ statements. What if it doesnʼt go well? What if they donʼt like me or laugh at me? What if I fall on my face? What if I fail? What if no one gets ...

My heart has been heavy lately with news stories. I wonʼt go into detail, but the story out of Cleveland definitely tore at me. There is so much pain, so much heartache, and so much brokenness. And the truth is we donʼt have to look to far outside our own lives to see this brokenness....

One of the hit TV shows has been The Bible on the History Channel. It drew 13 million viewers for itʼs debut on March 3rd. Itʼs been reported that more than 95 million have tuned into this extraordinary mini-series. Mark Burnett is one of the producers who has also produced Survivor, Shark Tank, and The Voice. When interviewed about The Bible by the Huffington Pos...

In the words of Lumiere the candlestick, "Be our guest!" (Sorry, with young kidsDisney movies are still big) Sunday, March 31st is the Super Bowl Sunday, the World Series Final, or StanleyCup Final for the church. Itʼs Easter Sunday the biggest, baddest Sunday in the churchyear. Easter changed everything. It has been said that if Jesus Christ died, but neverrose - the...

The Chicago area is filled with phenomenal restaurants. So I love to ask people what restaurant is on the top of their list. A TV show that documents peopleʼs favorite choices is "Chicagoʼs Best." Ambrosinoʼs here in Frankfort was featured on the show for their meatball sandwich - congrats! And if you have a great meal you can experience what I like to call food ...

I was talking to my brother-in-law who lives in Los Angeles and works for Sony Pictures. He works in the Human Resources department in leadership development. Basically, he coaches people in how to lead others better. He brought up the number #1 obstacle preventing others to lead better. You want to know what obstacle that is? Ego. Ego is what drives people in many compani...

I've been seeing a lot of reflective 2012 video montages. CBS put together a very moving montage of famous people who passed away. We remember people like Dick Clark and Whitney Houston. Sportscenter put together a bloopers montage with Jets quarterback Mark Sanchez running into the backside of his own player and fumbling the ball.Perhaps you too recently reflected on your...