Ten years ago, most of us didn’t have a smart phone, the iPad still hadn’t been introduced, the majority of visual entertainment was consumed through live TV (unless you had a TiVo—anyone remember those?), cash was a necessity, watches couldn’t tell us how many steps we had taken, Facebook was mainly for young people, and […]
One unexpected way to connect with your neighbors
A few years ago we were living in a rural part of Gig Harbor, and we didn’t really know our neighbors, because well, they were so far away. We could see their house but to get there, we either had to climb a fence and walk through a drainage ditch, or we had to walk […]
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Does God still heal today?
I once heard a story about an avid duck hunter who was in the market for a new bird dog. His search ended when he found a dog that could actually walk on water to retrieve a duck. Shocked by his find, he was sure none of his friends would ever believe him. He decided […]
Sending leaders
I was sitting in my classroom in Oxford on a cold Friday morning in January when two gentlemen, unfamiliar to me and the rest of the 19 students at the Oxford Center for Christian Apologetics, walked into the room. There was an empty seat next to me and one of them sat in it. I […]
You have to be broken to GLOW!
I saw this story on Facebook the other day, and I wanted to share it: I was in Dollar Tree last night and there was a lady and two kids behind me in the long line. One was a big kid, one was a toddler. The bigger one had a pack of glow sticks and […]
Saturday in the Sanctuary
This weekend we will once again move our Saturday service to the Sanctuary for those who would like to have their Sunday morning free to watch the Seahawks crush the Panthers. It’s worth noting that every week, our Saturday service is identical to our 10:45 am service, so if you normally come to 10:45 but […]
Life on the Water
Summer has arrived! One of the best things about summer in Gig Harbor is the easy access to the water. As a family we love to go down to one of the beaches nearby and play in the water. And we’re even more blessed than those who own boats, because we have friends that own […]
The Kingdom Without The King
Last week I heard the story of an English pastor who arrived in LA to plant a church. During his first week, he went to a bar to try to get an idea of what local culture was like. While there he ended up chatting to a group of three he had never met before. […]
Away with the holy huddle!
In the last few weeks, I’ve had the chance to speak with several church leaders in the UK, and one comment that has stuck out to me is this: “In the opening scene of the movie Happy Feet, there is this shot of all the penguins huddled together. My fear is that this is what […]
How to Have Spiritual Conversations Naturally
Ever since we showed Curtis’ story of meeting me in Starbucks and beginning a journey that resulted in him coming to church, joining a LifeGroup and placing his faith in Jesus, I’ve had people ask me: “Ellis, could you teach on how you had those conversations with Curtis?” And starting on September 13, I’m going to be doing […]
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