Monday morning quarterbacking: a favorite pastime in Minnesota, Chicago, Philadelphia, and now apparently, Seattle.

Many people have questioned the wisdom of the final play for the Seattle Seahawks in the Super Bowl last night.

Don’t.

Don’t do it.

The playcalling wasn’t the issue. If the Seahawks had run the ball and failed to get the touchdown, the very same people who are so shocked and appalled that the Seahawks threw a pass on the goal line would be lining up to suggest the perfect pass that would have won the game instead of running the ball.

People are human and imperfect. There were imperfections all over the game. No one is talking about Tom Brady’s two interceptions today. No one is criticizing Bill Belichick’s delay in changing the coverage on Chris Matthews. No one is talking about the imperfections of the officials (although one call in particular I hope will be reviewed since it could have led to a very serious injury for a player). No one is perfect.

I think the most important thing to remember about the Super Bowl XLIX is that it was a great game. Two excellent teams met for the championship. The coaches (and their assistants) were some of the best in the NFL. The players didn’t leave anything in the locker room; they performed at the highest levels on the field. Except for one moment in the final seconds of the game, no one who participated has anything to be ashamed about.

Many people will claim to know how to do it better, but the reality is there are only 32 people in the world that are NFL head coaches.

There is a reason for that.

Earlier this week, our lead pastor, his cousin, our worship leader and I all went to an event called “Pins for Pastors”. It was a day of bowling and fellowship that was sponsored by a national broadcasting company.

But I have to be honest: I am a terrible bowler. When I bowl (which is not very often), my score is usually around a 90. During the Pins for Pastors event this week, I started out with a few good frames, but I quickly slid back into my usual results. Towards the end, I was knocking down only one pin at a time or throwing a complete gutter ball.

We bowled three full games and by the time the final frame came around, I just wanted it to be over. But I also wanted to give it my best effort, even though at the end, it wouldn’t really make a difference.

So I relaxed, addressed the lane, stepped forward, and swung the ball.

Strike.

And again.

Strike.

And again.

Strike.

I was in shock; I had never bowled three strikes in a row in my entire life.

I was very lucky in that last frame, but putting my luck aside, those three strikes helped me realize something: it did matter how I finished the game. We can always finish strong, no matter what has happened in the past. The end is so important because how we reach the finish line, in many ways, is the part that counts.

We can finish strong in a marriage that has not been everything it could have been.

We can finish strong in relationships that have been neglected.

We can finish strong in a job or a ministry that has not reached its full potential.

We can finish strong in faith even though we have been distant from God.

We can finish strong in a life that has not been fully lived.

We can finish strong.

Author’s note: This post is also available at Fridley Covenant Church.

Last week, we explored 4 Suggestions to Start Reading the Bible Today. But if you have been a regular Bible reader for awhile now, you might be looking to reach the next level. Or perhaps your Bible time has become dry and you would like to find new enthusiasm for the Bible. Here are five ways to help you dive deeper into the Bible.

First, try a different translation. I know of one person who reads the entire Bible each year, but changes translations each year so it doesn’t feel as repetitive and dry. As I wrote last week, don’t let the fear of using the “wrong” translation keep you stuck in a rut. Many people prefer one translation, and there is nothing wrong with that, but a new translation can help you to actually read the text, and not just skim over familiar passages and stories. Different translations can make old favorites seem fresh and new.

Even if you read a translation you dislike or disagree with, it can help reignite your passion for the Bible. I was listening to an audio version of the Message some years ago and I remember thinking “did that really happen?” about a particular section. Later that day, I checked a more familiar translation and sure enough, the event did happen but the Message had a different way of describing it. Not only did I hear the Bible differently, but it led me to do more research and piqued my interest.

Second, bathe your Bible reading in prayer. The Holy Spirit opens our hearts and minds to understand the Bible. Reading the Bible without the Holy Spirit is like cleaning without using soap. Reading the Bible without prayer misses the point of reading the Bible; all you will get is knowledge, but not wisdom or faith. Pray and ask the Holy Spirit to speak to you through the Bible and transform you.

Third, read a whole chapter at a time. I know I suggested this in my previous post, but I believe it is so important I wanted to mention it again. If you are already reading at least a chapter in one sitting, then try for multiple chapters; you could even read a whole book in one sitting!

I am not trying to torture you, I promise. My goal here is to get you thinking in terms of chapters (or whole books) instead of individual verses. Reading large sections of the Bible at one time clarifies the connections between events or ideas. The Book of Judges is a great example. Even though there are individual times of redemption and rescue for Israel in Judges, the overall trajectory and theme of the book is that Israel is sliding deeper and deeper into sin. They have some victories, but over time, they are getting much worse. The book of Romans is another great example; each chapter builds on the previous until Paul caps his argument by calling his readers to be living sacrifices.

Fourth, do character studies instead of word studies. Word studies are very valuable and worthwhile, but if you would like to try something new, study a single character in the Bible. The Gospels are essentially character studies of Jesus; the book of 1 Samuel is a character study of Saul and David.

Minor characters might be the easiest to start with, since they have less material written about them. You could try Jonah, Philip the Evangelist (Acts 8), Joseph (the father of Jesus), Adam or Eve to begin a character study. Larger studies might include Moses, Job, Abraham, or Joshua. You could also try characters you might not be familiar with like the OT kings Josiah or Hezekiah.

Finally, share your experience with others. We live and learn in a community. Talk about what you are reading and how it is affecting you with a friend. Join a small group or Bible study that interests you where you can share thoughts and ideas from your reading time. You could write a blog about all the insights you gain from reading Scripture. You could also share on Facebook, but remember: many people are already posting Bible verses, so make sure yours stand out by describing how the Bible is shaping your mind, heart, and life. Your posts are less likely to get lost in the shuffle and you open the door for some great conversations.

Author’s note: This post is also available at Fridley Covenant Church.

I have been looking for the right time and place to say thank you to all the people who helped me during my seminary journey. Even though many of the people I want to thank are in my church, I didn’t want to hijack a worship service or Bible study, even just to say thank you. My blog seemed to be a good place to express my thanks and it seemed right to begin our journey here with gratitude.

I graduated from seminary last year, which was a huge achievement. I never saw any hard numbers, but one of my professors estimated about a third of seminary students never finish seminary and wash out before they ever get to ministry. Classes and studying do not come naturally to me, so it seemed all that much harder for me. Plus, a Master’s of Divinity is one of longest master’s level programs in the country (most programs are about half the length).

But I didn’t do it alone. I could never say “I came, I saw, and I conquered”. God opened so many doors and guided me during those years. He sustained me and renewed me during some dark days and He was there to celebrate the many victories.

My wife and I agreed she has an honorary seminary degree. She was my sounding board as I was working through my classes and she proofed almost every paper for me. She shared her life experiences and shaped how I understand baptism, which has had a profound impact on the direction of my ministry. Thanks my love.

My pastor was a huge help to me. I probably drove him crazy with just one more request for a meeting, or an interview, or something else I needed for a class. More importantly, he trusted me and offered so many opportunities to learn and do ministry. He responded when I asked for a specific ministry focus to grow as a leader and he gave me a ton of room to find my own voice. He has been a terrific mentor who held nothing back. Thanks my friend.

My church as a whole has been a huge blessing. They were incredibly patient as I was learning and growing and making mistakes. They gave some great feedback to help me grow and they have supported me in so many ways, including financially. I have been blown away by the generosity of our church, not just to me, but others as well. Thanks Fridley Covenant Church.

I could go on and on, from the family and friends who were supportive and understanding, to the professors who were patient with me and brought a wealth of ministry experience to their teaching, to a couple of Godly men who were close mentors and friends. To those mentioned and those who aren’t, thank you for shaping me to the person I am today.

As much as I want to say thank you, I also want to highlight a truth I think is easy to forget: we don’t live life alone; we live life in a community. Our victories are not ours alone and our failures are not limited to us either. Each of us have people who have helped us and influenced us on our journey. Each of us have people who are affected when we fail or suffer a loss. God Himself is present in the moments of failure as well as the moments of victory. We are not as alone as it might seem.

Who are some of the people you would like to thank?

How is your New Year’s Resolution going? I commented to my Sunday morning class that I think eating less and reading the Bible more probably lead the list of things Christians want to do better in the new year. Hopefully you are still motivated and committed to whatever goals you set for yourself in 2015. If not, remember you are definitely in good company! Most people abandon their goals for the new year by the end of January.

If you want to read more of the Bible in 2015, let me offer a few suggestions to help make that goal easier to reach. Today I will be offering some suggestions for beginners (those who do not read the Bible on a regular basis). Next week I will offer some suggestions for those who do read the Bible regularly, but who want to reach the next level or refresh and revitalize their reading time.

First, pick a translation that is appealing to you; don’t feel like you have to slug through a translation you don’t enjoy. Don’t worry about getting the most literally accurate Bible; your first goal is just to get reading. Here is a link to the 10 most popular translations (based on dollars and number of Bibles sold). Many new readers have enjoyed the New Living Translation (NLT) and the Holman Christian Standard Bible (HCSB) and I have found both very easy to read. Biblegateway.com provides a wealth of different translations you can try for free before needing to purchase a new Bible.

Second, pick a genre that is appealing to you. Genre means the type of literature you are reading. Many well-intentioned people start in Genesis, hit the long genealogies (so and so begat so and so), and lose interest. Find a place that is appealing to you. Unless you love reading legal documents, you probably don’t want to start with Leviticus.

If you enjoy poetry, start with the Psalms or Proverbs. If you enjoy history or just love stories, start with 1 and 2 Samuel, Nehemiah, or the early part of Exodus; you could also try any of the Gospels or Acts. If you enjoy theology, try Romans or 1 and 2 Corinthians. If you want practical advice on Christian living, start with Ephesians, James, or 1 John.

Third, make sure to find a time that works for you. I have discovered if I don’t do my Bible reading before I get ready for work, it will almost certainly not get done. As I am resting after my early morning exercise, I read Scripture and pray. A friend of mine does his reading as part of his evening routine. You could take a mid-morning or mid-afternoon break at work and read the Bible. Whatever works for you… as long as it actually works for you.

Finally, read a whole chapter at a time. You might have to work up to this, but there are very real benefits to reading a whole chapter in a sitting. Granted, some of the chapters are pretty long, but most of them can be completed in 10 minutes or less.

The benefit is you will begin to see the Bible as a collection of chapters instead of just a collection of verses. Even if the chapter is divided into different sections, each chapter is a coherent thought, idea, or story. The surrounding context (the chapter) is critical to understanding each verse and to understanding each book as a whole. Reading whole chapters in one sitting will train your mind to remember Scripture by chapters rather than cherry picked verses.

I hope this is helpful! What suggestions would you add for people wanting to read more of the Bible?

Author’s Note: This post is also available at Fridley Covenant Church.

As the NFL Draft approaches this week, ESPN has been increasing its news coverage of the NFL, and as I was on the treadmill this morning, they had a story on JaMarcus Russell. JaMarcus Russell was the number one overall pick in 2007 NFL Draft and signed a contract with the Oakland Raiders for $32 million dollars of guaranteed money. After two disappointing seasons, he was fired by the Raiders and has not played a single minute of football for any NFL team since.

I have been following JaMarcus Russell’s story in the news, partly just because I am a sucker for the underdog. I love to see people overcome challenges, especially if the challenge is from their own mistakes. Stories of redemption are inspiring, but even more than that, they tell the story of Scripture. The Bible is one massive story about redemption and the lengths God will go to for His own children.

The story on ESPN showed JaMarcus’ efforts to improve his game, including losing 45lbs. and working with former quarterback Jeff Garcia and other experts to improve his throwing motion and decision-making on the field. The story also included quotes from JaMarcus’ family, who mentioned how much JaMarcus has matured and realized how much he does not want to fail in his goal of playing football again.

Many people will judge JaMarcus based on his results on the football field. If he never plays football again, he will be remembered as one of the biggest draft busts in history. Even if he makes it back to the football field, it would take years of exceptional play to erase the past. But in many ways, the journey is just as important as the result.

Don’t misunderstand me: results matter. If you are consistently failing to achieve your goals, there is something going on in your life that needs to be addressed, but don’t focus so much on the goal that you deprive yourself of the journey. Whether or not JaMarcus Russell ever plays football again, if his journey leads him develop a stronger work ethic, kick his codeine habit, and become a deeper (and hopefully Christian) man, then those are huge gains that are worth more than his ability to play football.

Once his comeback attempt is over, his journey will not be chronicled on ESPN, but whatever he gained during the process will still be with him.

Author’s note: This post is also available at Fridley Covenant Church.

Ah, Google…what looked like a lasting marriage is turning out to be a torrid love affair that meets a tragic end, like a space probe that crashes into Mars because the engineers mixed up meters and feet in their calculations.

Anyone can use Google search…no account needed.

We started off slowly with Gmail. I was never wild about it and it was not my primary email address, but over time, your new interface and excellent spam filter won me over. The next step was Gtalk, an excellent IM client, which has been woefully underused. Of course, the irony is the lack of advertising was one of the reasons I loved it. Finally, we made the big plunge with Reader. I admit I was late to the game on that one…I was born two weeks late after all. Once the setup was complete, you were a daily, sometimes hourly, part of my existence. We still had room to grow. I was just starting to check out Blogger for my running commentary needs, and who knows where we would have gone from there.

Then you killed Google Reader, and as I posted on your own product you did it “with all of the class of someone spray-painting obscenities on your front lawn.”  I visited Reader one day and a pop-up told me Reader would no longer be a part of our relationship. No explanation whatever…just a one sentence statement in a pop-up window.

An edict from the high priest.

Since then, our relationship has been spiraling downward. Obviously not content with the havoc you are wreaking in my life, you removed the quick link to Reader from the Google home page, so I would no longer have quick access to the dying service. Why you could not have waited until the bitter end is beyond me.

I just don’t trust you anymore. Our relationship could have survived the end of Google Reader if you had told me the truth. You claimed my readership and attention wasn’t enough. Never mind the fact I give more time to Reader than Google+…you know, the social platform for which you have all of five people using regularly.

Now, I am just wondering what the next service to be removed is.

I am not going to wait to find out. I am sorry Google, but it is over, and to be honest, I have been expecting this.

You said “Our motto is don’t be evil”

To be more specific you felt the need to say you weren’t going to be evil. Something that is usually only said when your degree of evilness is precisely in doubt.

I knew that day our relationship would end. I dealt with it in the predictable way: I denied it. I did not have to take action that very day. Perhaps in the future, changes would be made so I would not have to make the agonizing choice. In the back of mind, I knew the game I was playing and I knew how it would end.

Friends who know me well will probably question my commitment. They have seen the cycle and know it better than anyone. Hurt as only a jilted lover can be, I will swear off Google services. Time and distance will dull the pain. Then I will want to try Google all over again, like all the previous attempts didn’t matter. It might be triggered by a new product or a slick interface, for which Google will get the “newsies” (reporters, bloggers, etc.) to report without a critical word about it, as if Google was really just a division of Apple. It might just be triggered by remembrance of things past and questions of why it did not work out the first time, as if the hurdles might be overcome with a renewed insight and enthusiasm. So many things look so tantalizing when you are standing on the outside looking in.

Perhaps I should write myself a letter to read in those times when my courage is failing and my will is weak. If I spend the time to write about this, I should at least be honest about our relationship. The truth is we were never that into each other. I always held you at arm’s length; I never really let you in. As for you, we both know you were only interested in one thing anyway.

It is time to reduce my digital footprint.

Facebook: You have been warned. That is all.

When working with a computer, many people (including myself) will get so frustrated with the computer, we force the computer to turn off by pulling the power cable out from the wall socket (just holding down the power button works too). It is called a power cycle or hard reboot; I have always thought of it as a hard reset. Sometimes we are not even frustrated, but we just recognize the computer can not do what we need it to do in its current state, and so we perform the hard reset.

I have been reading through Jeremiah for my morning devotional and I was struck by one of the notes in my study Bible. It said that 70 years passed between the exile of the Israelites and their return to the Promised Land. I thought to myself “it must have been a new generation of Israelites that returned to Jerusalem, because anyone who was exiled would have died in that time.” I do know there were some survivors of the Exile who returned to Jerusalem, but as a whole, it was new generation that came back to the Promised Land.

Then I remembered in Numbers 14 that Israel was forbidden to enter the Promised Land for 40 years because they had sinned against God and God wanted a new generation to enter the land. It was like God wanted to hit the reset button on the Israelites. He wanted to make sure they were not completely infected with sin the moment they settled in the new land; it would be hard enough to stay pure in the Promised Land as it was.

We need a hard reset too. Our new life in Christ is the Promised Land and we can’t be infected with sin to live in it. Perhaps you are a new Christian and are struggling and learning new ways to live and relate to others. Maybe you have been a Christ follower for awhile, but sin has snuck in the back door when you weren’t looking.

We will never be perfect; we are sinful creatures, but our encounter with God should change us in radical ways! Whatever that is…you might know already what God wants you to change. Oftentimes we need a hard reset…and sometimes God does it for us.

Author’s note: This post originally appeared at Fridley Covenant Church.

A friend of mine gets together with me once a month for fellowship and accountability and we go out for breakfast at the same restaurant. One of the waitresses serves us regularly and knows that I eat the same thing every time my friend and I have breakfast. The waitress noticed my weight loss and complemented me on it. I thanked her and braced myself for what would happen next.

She asked “What’s your secret?”

I quickly quipped it was my regular order of two eggs and an English muffin that was my secret. We laughed and she went to start our orders.

I get that question regularly, so I wasn’t shocked, but sometimes I really hate answering it. One reason is there is absolutely nothing spectacular or amazing about the way I lost weight. I ate less and started working out. Most people when they hear that think “boring!”

But that isn’t the only reason I dislike the question. The other reason is I did what worked for me. I knew myself well enough to know what would work for me and I knew the challenge I was facing well enough to know what would work and what wouldn’t.

I know that I get bored easily with workouts, so I only do it three times a week (I started at two times a week). I make sure I am changing things up (different muscle groups and different machines). When I am on the treadmill, I find a machine between two TVs so I have different shows to bounce back and forth from.

I know that the best nutrition for me is high protein and low carbohydrates (notice how I didn’t say diet?). I don’t cut carbohydrates out completely (believe me, I tried), but I eat about half of the daily recommended amount (with my doctor’s approval and support).

I could tell you all of those things, but those things are what work for me. What works for you might be very different. Maybe you do need to work out every day or you will fall out of the habit. Your nutrition needs are probably different from mine. If you don’t know what works for you, any changes you try to make will be much harder, and change is hard enough by itself.

I want to give you some encouragement today, because we are entering the time when many people will start to falter on the changes they wanted to make for the New Year. You can do it! If you haven’t taken the time to consider what works for you and the best way to step up to a new way of living, a new plan may be just the thing you need to stay on track.

Author’s note: This post originally appeared at Fridley Covenant Church.