Dear Ezra,

A very happy birthday to you!

Apparently as a six year old you are already very much a music fan. A Taylor Swift fan no less. I don’t even remember listening to music as a six year old. I didn’t really start getting into music until I was in high school.

The very first album that I ever bought was Jim Croce’s Life and Times. I was 14 years old. Probably the best known song from that album was Bad, Bad, Leroy Brown. Other favorite songs of his that I loved included Time in a Bottle, Operator, I Got a Name, You Don’t Mess Around with Jim, and I’ll Have to Say I Love You in a Song. It was this last song that I learned on the guitar in 1979 and sang to my girlfriend Linda Tucker. It was the first time that I ever told her that I love her and began a lifelong romance that is now almost 46 years old and going strong.

My favorite band was The Doobie Brothers. But I was also a a big fan of The Eagles, Chicago, Elton John, Marshall Tucker Band, Linda Ronstadt, and Gordon Lightfoot. I still have some of those early albums. Of course this was back in the day when an album was actually an album. Before cassette tapes. Before CDs. Before Spotify or Pandora.

Your dad and I used to play this game whenever we were in the car together – usually listening to the Oldies station. Either he or I would ask “Do you know who sings this song?” I was amazed at how many of the songs from my generation that he knew. I amaze myself sometimes at how many songs I can still sing even if I haven’t heard them in over 40 years. That is an indication of the power of music.

Music can touch the soul like almost nothing else. The music we listen to will lodge in our brains and stay there forever.  It can inspire us. It can calm us. It can draw us closer to God and it can draw us away from God. That’s why it’s so important to listen to the right kind of music – or perhaps better to say don’t listen to the wrong kind of music. And believe me, there is a lot of wrong kind of music out there. Now, I do not believe that Christians should only listen to Christian music. But I do believe that we need to be careful what we allow to infiltrate our minds.

I say this to you as you begin your musical journey so that you will be discerning. Your mom and dad will help you with this over the next few years but eventually you will have to make your own decisions. Choose wisely. And remember that if you are ever at a loss for what you should listen to, you can always start singing a Pop Pop song and remind yourself that “Its a great day to be alive.”

Never forget that you are very loved!

Pop Pop

 

Dear Haddon,

Five years old. Wow. Just wow and Happy Birthday. You will probably hear that a lot today. And you may get tired of hearing it but consider yourself blessed if both of your ears are working like they are supposed to.

I unfortunately am not hearing too well these days. Now Nona might make a case that this is not a recent problem and she may be right. But I really truly am not hearing well these days. I woke up a little over a month ago and the hearing in my right ear had turned off. Like a switch had been flipped and all of a sudden I just couldn’t hear out of that ear. It was weird. And even after several doctor visits the only thing that I am hearing out of that ear is just a loud ringing – which is a medical condition called tinnitus and is very annoying.

If you read the gospels and some of the conversations that Jesus had with his disciples, you might conclude that they also had a hearing problem. They did not. But they did have a listening problem. Especially when it came to the things Jesus said about His role as Messiah. They heard what they wanted to hear but did not hear what Jesus was saying.

Case in point: In Matthew 16, Jesus tells His disciples that He will suffer and then be killed… and then be raised from the dead. But it’s as if they stopped listening when He said the words  “be killed” because Peter is outraged and, get this, he REBUKES the King of Kings and Lord of Lords. So what does Jesus do? He drops the proverbial hammer: 1) He calls Peter (which is a nickname) another nickname – Satan, and 2) He tells the disciples that not only is He going to take up a cross but that if they want to be His disciples that they will also have to take up a cross. If they had not been listening before – well, now He has their attention.

Between the Gospels and the Book of Revelation Jesus used the phrase “He who has ears to hear, let him hear” about 10x. What exactly did Jesus mean by this? Just because you hear someone talking doesn’t mean you hear what they are saying. This is a lesson that it took a while for Peter and the other disciples to learn. This is a lesson that I am still trying to learn. And this is a lesson that I hope you learn early on in life.

It has been said that “most people do not listen with the intent to understand; they listen with the intent to reply.” I have found this to be true and have come across very few really good listeners. Good listeners don’t just listen with their ears they listen with their eyes and their hearts and their emotions, Good listeners ask questions. Good listeners are not afraid of silence. Good listeners are attentive. Good listeners indeed seek to understand.

One of my prayers for you is that you will become a man who is not just a good listener but a great listener. It is a skill that the Lord will use to bring blessing not just to your own life but especially to the lives of others. And it is a skill that will help you develop a deep abiding walk with God.

Now that I only have one good ear I am having to focus a lot more on my listening skills. So perhaps my loss of hearing will actually make me a better listener too.

Never forget that you are very loved!

Pop Pop

 

Dear Bowen,

I have no doubt that this will be another year of adventures for you. I already know about some of the excitement on the horizon (India and Thailand)  and hope to be a part of making other adventures happen. You of course know what I am talking about since you saw what happened when Grayson turned 10. Nona and I are very much looking forward to your trip with us – wherever that ends up being.

Here is a little bit of personal reflection about the year that I turned 10 years old. It was a crazy year.

The year was 1968.

• Two national figures had just been assassinated: Bobby Kennedy and Martin Luther King.
• The Vietnam War was going on.
• Richard Nixon was elected president – which would later lead to Watergate and political turmoil.
• I moved from 633 Aldrich St in Aiken to 848 Oleander Dr.
• I changed schools from North Aiken Elementary to Aiken Elementary.
• I moved next door to the England family which would be significant in my spiritual pilgrimage.
• I had an operation to remove a swollen lymph node from the side of my head.
• I was runner up in the school spelling bee as a 5th grader.
• I was playing Little League baseball and had become a New York Mets fan.
• I lived with my mom and my brother (Bett and Gus)
• My dad was still alive and lived 60 miles away in Columbia SC
• I was beginning to learn and love the game of golf – and to become a Master’s Tournament addict.
• I was still 11 years away from meeting Nona.

I say all that to let you know being 10 does not seem like that long ago. And yet here I am 56 years later. So as King Solomon would say in Ecclesiastes 11:9, “Rejoice, O young man in your youth, and let your heart cheer you in the days of your youth.” And even though I am 66 years old I am still trying to do that same thing – since in my mind I am a lot younger than my body sometimes leads me to believe.

I’m looking forward to our adventure together and the stories we will tell – not only this year but in the years to come.

Never forget that you are very loved!

Pop Pop

 

Dear Grandkids,

Happy New Year and welcome to 2025! I am already anticipating that this is going to be a memorable year and we will look back on 2025 with lots of stories to tell – hopefully lots of God-inspired stories! And perhaps the only thing needed for that to happen is a God-inspired prayer full of intentionality, inspiration, and imagination.

Let me share such a prayer with you. It is a prayer I will be praying every day this year. But it is not original to me. It actually comes from a song called “Let it Start With Me” written back in 2011 by a group called No Other Name. It is the only song I am familiar with by them but it is a song that has gripped my heart ever since I heard it. It is the first song on my primary Spotify play list. You can watch a video of the entire song below but here is the prayer that I think is so powerful.

Let it start with me
Open up my eyes
Fill my heart with your compassion
Free my mind from all distractions
Use my hands, to set the captive free
Move my feet to follow after you
Lord change the world and let it start with me.

Let it start with me – I need to be willing to be a part of  the answer to the prayer that I am praying.

Open up my eyes – I readily admit that I am more often than not blind to the needs that exist right around me. It’s amazing how callous I can be when there is so much hurt and helplessness staring me in the face.

Fill my heart with your compassion – I’m reminded of the Scripture that says: “When (Jesus) saw the crowds, he had compassion for them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd.” (Matthew 9:36) I need for God to fill me and fuel me with the kind of compassion that moved Jesus to action. 

Free my mind from all distractions – Distractions are everywhere. And I am very easily distracted. I’m not talking about sinful distractions. I am often distracted by good things. I think this is one of the devil’s schemes – to distract us from a God-assignment by introducing good and worthwhile opportunities that busy our mind and create detours that move us away from the purposes of God.

Use my hands, to set the captive free. Move my feet to follow after you. Lord change the world and let it start with me – Like I said, I need to be willing to be a part of the answer to the prayers that I am praying. My hope is that as 2026 dawns that I will have lots of stories to tell about how the Lord used my hands to set captives free in 2025 – people all around me who are captive to regrets, or to worry, or to unforgiveness, or failed relationships. And stories to tell about how the Lord used my feet to follow Him to  places I would generally not go – because of fear or lack of compassion or just plain disinterest.

I often share one of my favorite quotes with new team members at CFARox. It is by Bob Pierce, founder of World Vision and goes like this: “You may not be able to change the world but you can change the world for one person.”

Lord, let it start with me!

Never forget that you are very loved,

Pop Pop

 

 

 

 

 

 

Dear Audrey,

Happy birthday #7.

Perhaps you already know this about me but… I love leftovers!

This year your birthday falls really close to Thanksgiving. And as you know, we have really yummy Thanksgiving food. And lots of leftovers – which I am still enjoying.

Turkey… yum!
Mac and cheese… yum!
Deviled eggs… yum!
Stuffing… yum!
Sweet potato casserole… double yum!
Mocha cheesecake… triple yum!

My philosophy has always been that if it tastes good once then it tastes good twice. Or three or four times. It has never bothered me to eat the same meal several nights in a row.

Did you know that there are several stories about leftovers in the Bible. In the Gospel of Mark chapters 6 & 8, we read about the feeding of the 5000 and the feeding of the 4000. In both cases there were lots and lots of leftovers.

Jesus used leftovers to make a specific point. Note what He said in Mark 8:19-21…

When I broke the five loaves for the five thousand, how many baskets full of broken pieces did you take up?” They said to him, “Twelve.”  “And the seven for the four thousand, how many baskets full of broken pieces did you take up?” And they said to him, “Seven.”  And he said to them, “Do you not yet understand?”

What didn’t they understand?

They didn’t understand that Jesus could supply all their needs. Paul reminded the Philippians of this when he wrote: “And my God will supply every need of yours according to His riches in Christ Jesus.” (Philippians 4:19)

This is an important lesson to learn early in your life. Say, when you turn 7 years old.

Why you might ask? Because there will be MANY times in the years to come when you will feel like your needs are not being met. I will say a few things about this:

• Don’t confuse your needs with your wants.
• Sometimes God’s provision doesn’t come according to YOUR timetable.
• More often than not, God’s delay is an opportunity for you to demonstrate your faith in Him.
• And often God’s delay is a tough test that He wants to turn into a tremendous testimony.

But never doubt that our God will ALWAYS supply all your needs.

The next time that you have leftovers for supper might be a good time for you to say a prayer of thanksgiving – letting Him know that you have confidence that He will indeed always “supply every need of yours according to His riches in Christ Jesus.”

Never forget that you are very loved,

Pop Pop

 

 

 

Dear Grayson,

Happy Birthday my 12 year old grandson.

I feel like I have done something right as a grandfather. I have passed on my love for the New York Mets to one of my grandkids. With that in mind, I wanted to chronicle why 2024 was a great year to be a Mets fan and perhaps learn some life lessons from this past season.

The Mets lost their first 5 games of the season and by the end of May they were dead in the water. They were 11 games under .500 and on a downward spiral.  Both their won-loss record and their attitude reflected this. Most Met’s fans had already given up on the season. And with good reason. They were going nowhere fast.

On May 29th, Francisco Lindor called a team meeting that changed the attitude in the clubhouse. A little over 24 hours after that meeting, he powered the Mets to a 3-2 win over the Arizona Diamondbacks going 4-for-4 with two RBI. He was backing up his bravado with his bat. By the end of the year he was being talked about in MVP conversations.

On June 12, Grimace, the McDonald’s mascot you associate with Happy Meals, threw out the ceremonial first pitch. The Mets won their next 7 games. Baseball players are perhaps the most superstitious  of all athletes… so Grimace became their unofficial mascot and the Mets had  the best record in baseball from that point onward.

What do Alex Cohen (wife of Mets owner Steve Cohen), Jose’ Iglesias, Candelita, and Jerome McCroy all have in common? OMG! It was not only a chart topping song by Iglesias (aka Candelita) at the end of June, but also a Met’s battlecry which they used every time they hit a home run. The Mets were having FUN.

The Philadelphia Phillies had a great season and locked up the division pretty early. Four teams battled for three wild card spots to the very end of the season. But because of a rain-out, the Mets and the Braves had to play a double header on the Monday AFTER the season ended. The Mets had to win one of the two to advance. In the first game the Mets were up by 3 going into the bottom of the 8th but gave up 4 runs to fall behind 7-6. Lindor then hit a dramatic 2 run homer in the top of the 9th to give the Mets the victory they needed. OMG!

In the wild card series versus Milwaukee, Pete Alonso blasted a go-ahead, three-run home run in the ninth inning of the winner-take-all game 3 to power the Mets to a 4-2 victory. OMG! On to Philadelphia.

It was Lindor again who played the hero in the best of 5 divisional series against the Phillies, In the 6th inning of game 4, Lindor hit a grand slam to give the Mets a lead they would not relinquish. OMG! On to Los Angeles to face the team with the best record in baseball this year and the  Hall of Fame trio of Ohtani, Betts, and Freeman.

And alas, the Mets finally got beat. The Dodgers won the series 4 games to 2. The Mets walked too many, left too many on base, and did not get the clutch hits that had gotten them to the championship series. But it was fun fun ride and if I am being honest they were beaten by a better team. The Dodgers would go on to beat the Yankees in the World Series.

So even though the Mets lost it was a fun season to be a Mets fan. And even though the Mets lost there is a lot to look forward to. And even though the Mets lost there are some great lessons to be learned from their season.

Never give up! – It would have been easy for the Mets to give up lots of times along the way. This in true in life too. But it might be that when you most feel like giving up that a great story is just beginning to be written. In case you’ve never heard me say it, “Live a life worth telling stories about.”

Leadership Matters! – Great teams have great leaders. You are only 12 but already I see some great leadership qualities surfacing in your life. One key quality for great leadership is great character – and you are a young man of exceptional character.

Expect the unexpected! (You never know how or when God might flip the script) – God has a habit of doing the unexpected. You just never know when the Lord might show up. One aspect of faith is the “expectation of things hoped for.” So even when circumstances are bleak keep expecting God to show up – but get used to the idea that He might do it in an unexpected way.

Have Fun! – Another way to say that for those of us who are believers is to “live life joyfully!” Winning is great and I love to win. But losing doesn’t make me a loser. As long as my identity is founded in Christ I can always find joy no matter what the circumstances of life happen to be. Might as well have fun in this journey the Lord has me on.

I know that you are beginning a fun adventure today. I’m looking forward to hearing about the details. So happy birthday and bon voyage and get ready for the 2025 New York Mets!

Never forget that you are very loved,

Pop Pop

 

 

 

Dear Grandkids,

You already know that Nona and I love to travel.  You also know that we recently returned from a cruise to the Mediterranean Sea. (This retired gig does have some perks). While the trip is still fresh I wanted to highlight for you some of the things that we loved about the cruise. So here are my Top Ten highlights and a few pics to give you a taste of what we experienced. These are in no particular order.

1) Time together – You might think this a funny thing to mention since we live in the same house and are seemingly always together. But even in our semi-retirement, life is busy. We both have part time jobs and both have things around the house that we give attention to. So to be together 24-7 for two weeks was different. And believe it or not, we didn’t get tired of each other. (Maybe you should ask Nona if this was true for her). We have always valued shared memories and that is one of the reasons we love traveling. So even though these are in no particular order, this one is at the top of the list.

2) Time with friends – Repeating what I just said – we value shared memories. Our friends Tony and Kaylyn Fernandez joined us on the cruise. We had never traveled together but, at least in my opinion, we had a great time experiencing new places and nourishing our friendship. Now we have lots of shared stories to tell and memories to recall.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

3) The footsteps of the Apostle Paul – When we picked the cruise we did it it was not with the intent of visiting a bunch of Biblical sites. But a real bonus was that it turned out that way. We visited Malta where Paul was shipwrecked and bitten by a snake (Acts 28). We visited Ephesus where Paul lived for 3 years and planted a church (Acts 19) – and where the Apostle John also lived at the end of his life. We visited Rhodes (Acts 21). We visited Corinth where Paul planted a church (Acts 18). I am currently teaching the Book of 1 Corinthians at our church so this was especially interesting to me. We visited Athens where Paul preached and engaged some of the great thinkers of the day (Acts 17).

4) Cinque Terra revisited – 10 years ago on my Sabbatical we were in Italy and stayed in Cinque Terra for 3 days. CT is a series of 5 small villages on the Italian Riviera that are stunning. We had always said that we wanted to go back but didn’t know if we would ever be able to. So to revisit it and to be able to show it off to our friends was a real treat.

 

5) The cruise ship – This was our 5th cruise, We sailed with Royal Caribbean to the Bahamas; Norwegian to the Western Caribbean; Norwegian to the Baltics; Princess to Alaska; and this time with Holland America. We were on a ship called the Oosterdam. It was awesome. Our state room was spacious with a balcony. The food was great. The service was great. We would definitely consider cruising with Holland America again.

6) Memorable meals on the ship – One of the fun things about cruising is that food on board in included in the price. Which means that you can order whatever you want. Pretty much every night we would EACH order several appetizers, several entrees and several desserts – just because we could!

7) Memorable meals off the ship – We had a great time exploring all the ports we visited but perhaps some of our best memories will be the extended lunches we had – just relaxing and chatting and marveling at the beauty around us as we reflected on just how blessed we were to be able to do what we were doing.

 

 

 

8) Memorable sunsets – These speak for themselves…

 

 

9) The weather – Spectacular.

10) New countries visited – We started in Barcelona and spent 2 days there before we boarded the ship. Then ported near Monte Carlo, the ports that served Florence and Rome, Messina (Sicily), Malta, Ephesus, Rhodes, Santorini, and finished in Athens where we spent two nights before flying home. I had never been to Spain, Malta, or Turkey so it is always fun to add more countries to my list of countries visited. I think I am up to an even 50 now.

All of this to say that we had a super duper, incredibly awesome, bodaciously fun adventure traveling this part of the world and knocking one thing off my bucket list. And we are already beginning to think about a travel adventure with all of you. We are starting to save and think about where we could all go (we might even invite your parents) to celebrate our 50th anniversary – which is just 7 years away. So help us think what a trip like that might look like.

Never forget that you are very loved,

Pop Pop

 

 

 

Dear Grandkids,

In many ways our nation is a divided nation. But every 4 years we come together in unity to root for our Olympic athletes as they compete against the rest of the world. For these two weeks, it doesn’t seem to matter if you are democrat or republican, wealthy or poor, black, hispanic, or white, a believer in God or not. There is something about the Olympics that draws us together as a country.

Such is the case right now as we watch the Paris Olympics – in spite of some of the controversies that have claimed (more than necessary) social media attention. We collectively cheer robustly at the “thrill of victory” and seemingly sigh en masse at the “agony of defeat.” We find ourselves caught up in the drama that unfolds before our eyes of people that we had never even heard of two weeks. We learn about their stories and our hearts  are captivated by the commitment and perseverance it takes to be a world class athlete.

There is a story from the Paris Olympics that you may not be familiar with – probably because it happened 100 years ago. A lot of people from my generation are familiar with the story because it was actually made into a movie 42 years ago. A really good movie by the way. But I have come to find out that your generation and younger have never even heard of the movie Chariots of Fire much less of who the movie was about.

Eric Liddell was 22 years old in 1924. He was from Scotland and his parents were missionaries to China. He attended British prep schools while growing up and spent years without seeing his parents. He was a devout Christian and a very very fast sprinter. He believed that God had made him fast for a reason and determined to use his gift for the glory of God.

In 1924, Liddell was considered Great Britain’s best hope of winning the 100 meters at the Paris Olympics. But when he learned that the heats for the 100 were scheduled for a Sunday he pulled himself out of the race because of his convictions about what you could and could not do on the Sabbath. Some admired his conviction but a lot of people thought he was being unpatriotic. For Liddell, it was a matter of personal integrity and obedience.

He instead began training for the 400m which was not his specialty. Few people gave him any kind of chance to medal. But he won his qualifying heat, and then to the amazement of everyone, won the gold medal and set a new world record in the process. Here is the clip from Chariots of Fire depicting the race…

I have always loved this quote from the movie that you heard near the end of the clip: “I believe God made me for a purpose, but He also made me fast. And when I run, I feel His pleasure.”

Eric Liddell, who became known as “The Flying Scotsman,” returned home as a conquering hero. He then left for  China in 1925 where he served as a missionary until his death at the young age of 43 due to an inoperable brain tumor.

Liddell’s story is a great story. An inspiring story. A story worth telling. Perhaps there will be stories that come out of these Paris Olympics that will be just as inspiring and just as worth telling. We all have a story waiting to be told. I have no doubt that your story, when the last chapter is written, will be very compelling, with interesting plot twists, and an inspiration to those who read it. Just remember that God has made you for a purpose and you are to pursue that purpose to the glory of God. And when you do, you will feel His pleasure – which is a great way to walk through this life!

Never forget that you are very loved,

Pop Pop

 

 

 

Dear Grandkids,

I just recently learned a lesson that I wish I had learned many years ago. Evidently drinking water and staying hydrated is really important to staying healthy. You would think that this is something I should have known. I’ve been told that I needed to drink more than I do – but it always came across as a suggestion rather as a mandate. I mean after all, I have always been fairly healthy.

At least that’s what I thought. And then I did an inventory of all the medications I take every day:

• a pill to lower my LDL cholesterol
• a pill to lower my blood pressure
• 4 pills (2 in the AM and 2 in the PM) to help prevent kidney stone production
• 2 pills (1 in the AM and 1 in the PM) to control headaches
• Vitamin D because my D level is too low

Maybe I am not as healthy as I thought I was.

As you know I have been battling kidney stones since February. This past week I had my 5th surgical procedure since April to try to get rid of those pesky “thorns in the flesh.” I have been told that I am now at “ground zero” and have been cleaned out. And now I have come to find out that kidney stones are preventable. Say what? Maybe I have been told this all along but just wasn’t listening. Here are two recent conversations with doctors – see if you note a difference…

My urologist – ” You need to drink more – you need to be drinking 3 liters of fluids each day.”

My nephrologist ( saw him for the first time last month) – ” If you will drink 3 liters of fluids each day kidney stones do not have a chance to form in your kidneys because the crystals are getting flushed out.”

Being told to drink 3 liters each day from my nephrologist all of a sudden took on a whole new meaning. NO MORE KIDNEY STONES! So guess what I have started doing religiously every. single. day?

Communication tip: Information is good. But information with specific application is better. To say it another way: knowing the “why” behind the “what” can be motivational and transformational.

Here is another example of the importance of “knowing your why”: As a believer in Jesus we are told to read our Bible. We are often told WHAT to do without being told WHY.

The What Without the Why goes like this – “If you are a Christian, you need to be reading your Bible every day.”

How much better to include the why behind the what – “If you will spend time reading Scripture each day you can expect at least these 5 things: 1) that you will get to know God better and sense His nearness, 2) that you will begin to discern His will and purpose for your life, 3) that you will be better equipped to fight the evil one who seeks to destroy your soul, 4) that you will experience peace and contentment in a way that you have not done before, 5) and eternal things will begin to be prioritized over earthly things and you will develop a joy-fueled hope in this life as you anticipate the life to come.

Knowing the WHY we should read our Bible encourages me to want to read it. Not knowing the why encourages me toward legalism.

So I hope you will remember this – staying hydrated is supremely important. Physically, for the health of your body. And spiritually, for the health of your soul. As you drink the thirst quenching water of the Word you WILL be refreshed and energized and invigorated.

So when you finish reading this epistle, go grab a bottle of water AND your Bible and… drink – for your heart’s content!

And never forget that you are very loved,

Pop Pop