“To die would be an awfully great adventure” – Peter Pan I sat at the bedside of a dying woman that day. She had asked for a pastor to come to see her, and knew her time was at an end. After a few pleasantries, I asked her what she wanted to talk about.  Mostly,…

Her funeral was on a sunny Spring day several years ago. My mom’s sister Jewell had struggled with cancer and finally succumbed. She was in her 80s, so no one could say it came as a surprise. But what did startle us was just how spry she’d become post mortem. Before I go any further,…

We got back in town last week from my father-in-law’s funeral. It was an emotional journey for us all. “Papa” was quite an accomplished pastor and missionary, and served as patriarch of the family. We knew he was seriously ill, but expected him to overcome the cancer like he’d done 15 years before. But then…

Once I was a thief… for about 6 times each week onstage. A few years ago, I played Jean Valjean in a production of the musical Les Miserables. It was a life-changing experience, and a story that continues to teach me. As a newly-released convict, Valjean robs a Bishop who had shown him kindness. When Valjean is…

Watch Pastor Dave's message on age and running out of time...

Winning isn’t all it’s cracked up to be. For instance, do you remember everyone’s favorite Grammy-winners, “The New Vaudeville Band”? Anyone? Well, they won 1967’s Best Contemporary Rock and Roll recording, beating out two unquestionable masterpieces, “Eleanor Rigby” by the Beatles, and “Good Vibrations” by the Beach Boys. Got the name of New Vaudeville Band’s hit song yet?…

About a year ago, our lives were tragically changed in an instant.  Last June on Father’s Day, my brother-in-law Claude Williams was killed. He was a pastor in New Orleans, with a wife and three young boys. He’d stopped to help a stalled motorist and was hit by a drunk driver speeding at approximately 100…

One of my favorite jokes is the one about the student who wrote across his religion professor's chalkboard, "God is Dead' - Nietzsche" The old teacher saw it, but went on with his lesson unphased. The next day the student came to class to see if his statement was still on the chalkboard. But instead, it appeared…

We used to live across from a man who watched our house every single day. Even worse, he was constantly leering at our kids. Anywhere else, you’d call the cops on him.  But in Florida, you elect him to the Neighborhood Association board. It was as if that nosy neighbor Gladys Kravitz from Bewitched lived across…

Here's an excerpt from my new book The Seven Surprises, available now at Amazon.com. Hope you enjoy it - Dave I first started waking up around the age of 41. I’d just started work at a very great church. I knew it was a great church because the people were sure to tell me that most…

Allow me for a moment to do a bit of "virtue signaling"... One morning last winter, Facebook decided to post an old photo from the winter before on my newsfeed. It was taken by my wife, who tagged me when I was shoveling snow off our neighbor’s front yard. We were living in St Louis, and…

This is a picture of my baby girls a few days before Fathers Day 2020. I remember the exact moment and where I was when the one on the right entered my life. Her name is Elizabeth (“Ellie” for short) and she was my second chance at being a dad. It’s not that I was…