The orphanage I help run was spared by the recent wildfires that blew through our town. Many people were not so fortunate. In response to one of the many “Praise God” comments on Facebook, one angry gentleman shared a substantial rant, “If God was going to spare you, why did He start the fire? Why did other homes burn? Does God not love them as much?” Obviously, this gentleman has some issues, but it brings up some profound questions that have plagued theologians from the beginning. How does one explain the randomness of suffering? Why are there orphans? Why do some people get cancer? People much wiser than I have struggled to respond to this question. Here are a few thoughts. Continue reading
A Firestorm VS Juan and the Hand of God
This blog is not like most of my posts. Oct 25, 2019, is a day that people will remember for a long time in our town. It might be too soon for this, but here is a short take on a terrifying night that has changed many lives.
Thursday night, a firestorm tore through our small valley, leaving miles of destruction in its wake. The orphanage was saved, and no one can explain how other than the hand of God. I write this with the acidic scent of burnt brush, trees, plastic, and wood in the air. Ash is still in piles and swirls around my living room, blown through any random crack or window seal during the firestorm. As I write this, it’s pre-dawn on Sunday morning, looking out my window at large dark swathes of our town where homes once stood. I still feel the rush of adrenalin as I remember standing with friends and family and watching much of our town burn just 48 hours ago. Continue reading
The Selfie With the Poor Kid
The idea of social media and short-term missions was brought up to me three times in the last week. It also comes up a lot when you run an orphanage as to how much exposure the children should get online. When and how do we post to social media? What are we saying when we do? It’s a complicated issue. How do you engage people back home and not use photos of cute poor kids or needy areas? Continue reading
Expectations in Marriage and Missions
The church in America is an interesting animal. Over the years, the church has done some incredibly positive work, and at the same time, if we’re honest, the church has done a lot of damage. One ongoing and problematic issue the church has is that it tends to have a pack mentality. The church tends to embrace whatever the current trend is. Whether it’s calling for the prohibition of alcohol one hundred years ago, the rabid opposition to secular music about 30 years ago, or the spike in end-time studies that seems to come around every 10 or 15 years, the church follows trends. Continue reading
DJ from the orphanage 