A Week at An Orthodox Seminary

September 4, 2015

This week was a trip back in time for me. Since graduating college in 1998, it's been 17 years since I’ve lived as a student – going to classes, sleeping in a dorm, and best of all, eating cafeteria food for an entire week!

But that’s what this week was for me. I spent the week at the Antiochian Village in rural western Pennsylvania as part of a seminary program through the Antiochian House of Studies. The program is mainly a distance study, but does involve one week of residency every year.

So for the past five days, it was like 1998 once again.

Christianity & America

September 1, 2015

As many of you know, I recently returned from a two week mission trip to Kenya with my family. That trip made me think a lot about what mission is and how it applies to life back here in America. In this week’s message, I share those thoughts and how I believe the concept of “mission” translates to the United States of America.

How does "mission" work in America? Are we supposed to be knocking on people’s doors with Bibles in our hands? Does the idea of mission even apply to life in America?

How can we – the Christians in America – make an impact on our nation and bring it back to its Christian roots?

That’s the topic in this week’s message. Hope you enjoy. And may God bless America.

"A Call to Prayer" by Ben Franklin

July 3, 2015

Below is an excerpt from a speech by Benjamin Franklin at the Constitutional Convention in July 1797. After struggling for several weeks and making little progress on the writing of the Constitution, 81 year old Benjamin Franklin rose and addressed the President (referred to as Sir) and the rest of the troubled and confused convention.

This is what he said:

LIVING YOUR STRENGTHS Part 3 - My Strengths & Your Weakness

September 1, 2014

Every person (not just you) has unique and eternal value in God’s eyes and therefore should have the same value in yours.

That was the central message of yesterday's series finale in the Living Your Strengths series. After two weeks of talking about the importance of understanding and maximizing our own strengths, we looked at the flip side yesterday - dealing with the weaknesses of others.

It's easy to think highly of our own strengths and look down at others who don't share them. It's easy to think that because something is easy for me or comes natural to me, then it should be the same for others as well. But that's not the point.

Check out the message above and see why it's so important to not just ACCEPT the weaknesses of others, but to APPRECIATE them because those differences were designed by God for a specific reason.

Now it's your job to figure out what that reason is for the people in your life.

LIVING YOUR STRENGTHS Part 2 - Discovering Your Greatness

August 25, 2014

“Most assuredly, I say to you, he who believes in Me, the works that I do he will do also; and GREATER WORKS THAN THESE HE WILL DO, because I go to My Father.” (John 14:12)

Did you ever think about how that verse could possibly be true? How could we do "greater works" than Jesus Himself? The One who walked on water? Fed the multitudes with 5 loaves and 2 fish? Healed the sick and raised the dead? Is it actually possible for me to do "greater works than these?"

I say YES! And in Part 2 of the Living Your Strengths series, I tell you why I believe that.

LIVING YOUR STRENGTHS Part 1 - The Power of the Right Fit

August 18, 2014

God didn't create you to be GOOD at everything, but He did create you to be GREAT at something.

That's the premise of the latest series at The Well called LIVING YOUR STRENGTHS. The idea is that yes, you can do whatever you want it if you try hard enough - but that doesn't mean that you can do it WELL. Based on the highly renowned Clifton StrengthsFinder ® assessment, the Living Your Strengths series will help you identify your God-given strengths and how to use them for your growth and for God’s glory.

God created us all uniquely – with different strengths – in order that the Body of Christ would be complete. The Church - including YOUR church - needs everyone’s strengths in order to be operating at full strength and fulfilling God's mission in the world.

THE DANIEL PLAN, Part 6 - Winning with Hand You're Dealt

August 12, 2014

The sixth and final message in THE DANIEL PLAN series and this may have been the most eye-opening, life-changing of them all. The message was titled "Winning with the Hand You're Dealt."

Life is kinda like a game of poker. We're given a certain set of "cards" that we didn't choose. We didn't choose when or where we were born... we didn't choose our parents or how they treated us... we didn't choose our physical weaknesses or limitations. There's a lot of things that go into us that are beyond our control.

The easy thing to do is to complain about it and wish I had a different set of cards; the right thing to do is to make the most of the hand I've been dealt.

That's the subject of this week's message. If you struggle with a poor self-identity or thoughts/feelings of anxiety, fear or guilt, then you MUST listen to this week's message to see how God wants to transforms those "cards" into a winning hand.

Enjoy!

THE DANIEL PLAN, Part 5 – God's Power in Your Life

August 4, 2014

Look who's back! After a month long hiatus from preaching, I made my return yesterday for the 5th message in THE DANIEL PLAN series. And what I noticed is that when you try to keep a preacher's mouth shut for 4 weeks, then you don't know what's gonna come out when it opens!

And that's what happened yesterday.

The message above is one of those "from my heart" messages that I really want the whole world to hear. It's about how to live a life of blessing and how to be used by God. It's about how to dream BIG and how to turn those dreams into reality with the power of God.

It's a message that I'd love you to listen to and apply in your life. Enjoy!

THE DANIEL PLAN, Part 4 – We're Better Together

July 28, 2014

Community - one of the most overused words in churches everyone. Everyone talks about it, but so few actually experience. Is it possible to live healthy lives without it???

NO! Check out week 4 of THE DANIEL PLAN as my good friend Michael Guirguis talks about the importance of community and why it is essential for a balanced, healthy life. And make sure you stay tuned till the very end of the video for a memorable ending to this week's message.

And come join us for The Daniel Plan - either in person or by following along at TheWellAtSTSA.com - and find out what it means to "glorify God in your body." Enjoy!

THE DANIEL PLAN, Part 3 – Goal Setting

July 21, 2014

One of the most important steps in making any significant life change is the process of SETTING GOALS. And that was the topic of this week's message. Check out the Week 3 message in THE DANIEL PLAN - delivered by my good friend Peter Karras - and learn why it's important to set goals and how you can increase your chances of success by setting godly goals for your health.

Come join us for The Daniel Plan - either in person or by following along at TheWellAtSTSA.com - and find out what it means to "glorify God in your body." Enjoy!

THE DANIEL PLAN, Part 2 - Principles for Lasting Change

July 14, 2014

Week 2 of THE DANIEL PLAN and now we're getting into the good stuff. Special thanks to our special guest speaker this week - Steve Messeh - who talked to us about his experience with The Daniel Plan and the key principles needed to ensure lasting change. In addition, you want to make sure you get to the end of this video and see what his wife Nadia had to say about her experience with the program as well - truly a life transformation!

Come join us for The Daniel Plan - either in person or by following along online - and find out what it means to "glorify God in your body." Enjoy!

THE DANIEL PLAN, Part 1 - What Does God Say About My Body

July 7, 2014

“Or do you not know that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God, and you are not your own? For you were bought at a price; therefore glorify God in your body and in your spirit, which are God’s.” 1 Corinthians 6:19-20

THE DANIEL PLAN kicked off this weekend and our first message was all about God's view of our bodies. I know it doesn't sound very spiritual, but what you do with your body really matters to God. Our bodies are more than simply containers to hold our spirits; they are part of who God created us to be and therefore how we treat our bodies matters to God.

Working Harder is Not the Answer

March 19, 2014

Take it from me – a recovering workaholic – WORKING HARDER IS NOT THE ANSWER! We all have things in our life that we want to change – bad habits that we want to get rid of, or good habits that we want to incorporate into our lives. And most of us think about those changes in terms of effort – I need to work harder to accomplish _________.

Well, I know this might sound strange but believe it or not sometimes working harder is actually counter-productive and takes us further away from our goal, not closer to it.

What is Character?

February 5, 2014

WHAT IS CHARACTER?

Will Rogers, the great comedian of the Great Depression, once commented on the definition of character. He told to people to "live in such a way that you wouldn't be ashamed to sell your parrot to the town gossip!"

Gordon H. Taggart struggled with the whole concept of character, wishing he had more of it. As he wrote about what he lacked in character, he did a fantastic job of describing what it meant to BE the right kind of person. He described 11 characteristics.

"I wish I were...

Momentum 2014: STRIVE FOR GREATNESS

January 29, 2014

MOMENTUM IS BACK! Woo hoo! Time to get excited! Why? Because this year’s conference promises to be “greater” than ever! That’s because the topic this year is STRIVE FOR GREATNESS. And believe me when I say that I have never been more excited for a conference than I am for this one.

You see, I have this fundamental belief inside my core that I just can’t shake. Whenever I read the Scriptures or look at the lives of those who have given themselves into the LORD’s hands, I just can’t help but coming to one conclusion: WE WERE MADE FOR GREATNESS.

Not greatness in the world’s eyes (riches, fame, etc.), but greatness in God’s eyes – the kind that comes from being “His workmanship” and from being “sons of the Most High.” God didn’t create us for “normal-ness” or “average-ness” or “barely-getting-by-ness.” He made us to be great!

Where Will You Be At the End of 2014?

January 9, 2014

One week into 2014 and by now, statistics say that 60% of New Year’s resolutions have already been abandoned. And by the end of January, that total will reach almost 90%! WOW!

But it doesn’t have to be that way – at least not for you. You don’t have to be part of the 90%. You can make 2014 different. Believe me, I struggle with New Year’s resolutions just as much as the next person and I don’t claim to have any secret tricks to make it any easier. But I have discovered some helpful hints throughout the years that have helped me stay on track.

The most important concept/idea to keep in mind is this (this is a good one to post above your desk or somewhere prominent):

We all end up somewhere, but few people end up somewhere on purpose.

Could You Use A Little More Rest?

November 27, 2013

It's Thanksgiving week and that means some good old fashioned R&R for me. So no post today. But I didn't want to want to leave my faithful readers high and dry, so here is the post I wrote last year, just after Thanksgiving. It talks about how I spent my holiday and how I used Thanksgiving week to get plenty of REST - but not exactly as you might think. Take look below and see for yourself. It's a crucial reminder for all of us as we head into the holiday season.

“Best week ever! Gotta make this a yearly tradition! I definitely got the rest I needed!”

That’s what I keep telling everyone who asks me about my Thanksgiving Week. We did something very special this year. We rented a large house out in the mountains and spent the entire week there along with the rest of our “medium family” as my kids like to say.

(fyi, little family = mom, dad, kids; medium family = grandmas, grandpas, uncles, aunts, cousins; big family = church family)

Totally away from everything. No commitments, no email, no phone calls, no meetings... no agenda at all! In fact, the only thing on the calendar all week was a little football game that took place on Thanksgiving Day. You may have heard about it – those who live in the DC area sure did. In case you didn’t though, let me fill you in…

Washington Redskins 38, Dallas Cowboys 31.HAIL TO THE REDSKINS! Skins fans – it’s time to go ahead and make those Super Bowl reservations now!

How I Stay on Schedule

November 6, 2013

“The bad news is time flies. The good news is you’re the pilot.” Michael Altshuler

Yesterday I wrote about Why I Go to Bed at 8:00 and apparently I raised quite a few eyebrows. Several people asked me to provide more details as to how I schedule my days and how I use my time. So as a blogger of course I am happy to share.

But let me preface it by saying that there is no right way to schedule your time or a right time that everyone should sleep and wake up. I’ll share what’s worked for me but please realize that – as my wife always tells me – there’s no one else in the world like me.

So here goes - my top 3 principles when it comes to staying on a schedule.

The Day I Discovered that Blue Isn't Purple

September 11, 2013

I hate being wrong. Of course no one enjoys it when they are mistaken, but some people tend to be more experienced at it than others and therefore better able to deal with it (wink wink).

Once upon a time, back when I was just a young lad in 4th grade, I learned a valuable lesson about self-deception. I learned that being “wrong” is bad; but what’s worse is being wrong and having everyone else realize it except you.

My 4th grade teacher had given us an assignment to create a large poster with all the creatures of the sea that we had just learned about in class. So I – being a studious young man from a young age – took great care to systematically go through the chapter and draw each animal that the textbook mentioned (we didn’t need to draw them all, but as you can see I was an overachiever from a young age).

BOLD Part 5 - Grander Vision Living

June 17, 2013

We wrapped up the BOLD series yesterday with the final message on GRANDER VISION LIVING.

What is that? It's all about a challenge... no, rather an invitation... to invest your life in the only thing that really matters when all is said and done. Just as the Lord Jesus invited His disciples to live for "the big fish", He does the same with us today. What does that mean? You'll have to watch the video to find out!