Good evening, friend! As I stirred from sleep early this Memorial Day morning, this thought popped into my mind: “How can I remember what I never knew?” On a day devoted to memories, how can I remember something I never experienced? The Old Testament is replete with verses that urge the people of Israel to […]
Four steps to re-open Chapel Hill
Since COVID-19 made it impossible for all of us to meet together for worship, you have taken the words “beyond these walls” literally and embraced this moment by worshipping in your homes, gathering in LifeGroups over Zoom, praying for one another virtually, and even changing the way you give money to Chapel Hill so that […]
Sleep on This: Shiny (May 15)
Good evening, friend: It’s the sort of story that deserves to be repeated…because it is such a great story. And because it puts my daughter, one of my favorite persons, in such a great light…literally. So, I repeat! My in-laws were visiting and my father-in-law, Boyd, announced he had lost a large diamond off of […]
Sleep on This: Good news about bad news (May 14)
Good evening, friend! “If it bleeds, it leads.” This familiar trope describes the state of the media today. Perhaps it always has, but never more than today. The more spectacular the bad news, the better. And like a rat that is mesmerized by the swaying of the cobra’s head, we find it almost impossible to […]
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Sleep on This: The Bread Chronicles—a postscript
Good evening, friend: I know, I know—we were wrapping up this bread thing last week. But Cyndi gave me an idea. She pointed out that in John 6, where Jesus says, “I am the Bread of Life,” he concludes by saying, “Whoever feeds on this bread will live forever.” “Notice,” she said, “he doesn’t say […]
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Sleep on This: Mirage (May 13)
Good evening, friend! Cyndi and I slipped over to the coast for Mother’s Day weekend. It’s still great—but weird—that we can worship with all of you virtually. Even weirder when I raise my hands to receive the benediction—from myself! (BTW, if you missed our Mother’s Day services, I’d urge you to check it out. My […]
Sleep on This: Some sad news about Ravi Zacharias (May 11)
Good evening, friend: I received some very sad news this weekend. Ravi Zacharias, world-renowned apologist and a friend of Chapel Hill, has been diagnosed with terminal cancer. The only treatment he will receive is palliative. He is returning to his home in Atlanta to share the final lap of his well-run life with his family. […]
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A weird and wonderful Mother’s Day
I enjoy Mother’s Day at Chapel Hill. So do you, apparently, because it is always one of our better-attended services. Moms and grandmoms show up, beautifully arrayed. If ever hats will make an appearance in a Chapel Hill service, this is the day. So grand! And of course, if EVER there is a day when […]
Sleep on This: The Bread Chronicles—scarcity (May 7)
Good evening, friend! In support of my nascent bread-baking career, I went searching again yesterday for a dough scraper. It’s just a wedge of silicone that you use to scrape clean the insides of your mixing bowl. (I borrowed one for the loaves I baked earlier this week and found it quite handy.) But even […]
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Sleep on This: The Bread Chronicles—a Father’s heart (May 8)
Good evening, friend. I managed to pace myself. I gave one of my inaugural loaves away and sliced the other one as thinly as possible so as to expand that single loaf’s provision and to NOT expand my waistline as quickly. But, as I munch my way toward the vestigial heel of that bread, I […]
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