Classic Post Encore: The Unsung Hero of Christmas

Merry Christmas! While we celebrate the incarnation of Christ Jesus, I want to ask you to consider the example of a man who was indispensable to the Christmas story — Joseph the carpenter. Meet Joseph When we first meet Joseph in the Bible, he is defined in terms of his relationships — as the son […]

Classic Post Encore: The Advent Conspiracy – A Cure for Grinches?

Christmas is just around the corner.  Despite the holiday-themed TV ads that began in early November and the radio stations that started playing Christmas music around the same time, it’s possible you may have missed it.  As a friend of mine observed, “Christmas seems to come earlier every year.” If the crass commercialization of the […]

Classic Post – Lessons Learned from 30+ Years of Marriage

“He who finds a wife finds a good thing    and obtains favor from the Lord.” – Proverbs 18:22 (ESV) Mrs. Booth and I celebrated our wedding anniversary this week. I am profoundly thankful for the years we have had together, and I look forward to the years ahead. The institution of marriage has suffered multiple body […]

Re-post: How to Shine at This Year’s Thanksgiving Dinner

“And you may find yourself living in a shotgun shack And you may find yourself in another part of the world And you may find yourself behind the wheel of a large automobile And you may find yourself in a beautiful house, with a beautiful wife And you may ask yourself-Well…How did I get here?” […]

Re-post: In Memory of Carolyn S. Lakes (1932 – 2017)

“The memory of the righteous is a blessing, but the name of the wicked will rot.” – Proverbs 10:7 (ESV) “It shouldn’t have happened.” Those were my wife’s words on Sunday, October 8 — the day she and her siblings, our nephew, and I said goodbye to their mother, his grandmother, my mother-in-law. “It shouldn’t […]

Re-post: Eight Reasons Why Old-School Wedding Vows Are The Best

Build a lasting marriage with a sound foundation

“Rain and storm and dark skies Well now they don’t mean a thing If you got a girl that loves you And who wants to wear your ring So c’mon mister trouble We’ll make it through you somehow We’ll fill this house with all the love All that heaven will allow” -Bruce Springsteen “All That […]

Re-post: To Lead is To Love is To Serve

The anatomy of marriage

“Marriage is the graduate school of service.” – Pastor David Chadwick I’ve made no secret of my belief in marriage. Mrs. Booth and I have been married for nearly 32 years, with the struggles and joys that come with being married that long. It has been and is a great thing and I love being […]

Classic Post: Four Reasons Why Sex Is Such a Big Deal

Not just any two will do

“I could never take a chance Of losing love to find romance In the mysterious distance Between a man and a woman.”    -U2 As the saying goes, men think about sex roughly every seven seconds.  Sometimes it can seem like more frequently than that!  Whether that is the reason or not, our entertainment, our […]

Re-post: Defeating the False Self – a First-Person Account

He's not all bad...

“There is a me you would not recognize…” – Over the Rhine from Latter Days In my previous post on identity, I warned against the rise of the impostor, also known as the false self. If you’re like me and most of the men I’ve met, you have either overcome the false self, or you […]

Classic Post: On Traditions – Updated

Honoring the past and living with joy in the present

“Nothing comes from nothing. Nothing ever could” — Richard Rogers (“Something Good”) As Christmas approaches, I’ve been thinking about the importance of traditions.  Having a set of practices tied to the Christmas season has generated lots of benefits for me and my household.  I credit our traditions with the following: Making memories and sharing experiences that strengthen […]