Recent Posts
Memorial Day 2026 – Remember
The Memorial Day holiday encourages us to remember those who have fought and sacrificed their lives for the freedoms we enjoy. I have quite a few family members who served in the military: my dad, uncles, grandfathers, and nephews. But to my knowledge, I don’t have any blood relatives who gave their lives in service to the United States of America. Because I don’t have a direct family or personal connection to honor on Memorial Day, on Monday I’m going to remember these words from Billy Graham (d. 2018) who reflected on his time with President Dwight Eisenhower in 1955...
Commencement
It’s officially graduation season! And with it comes a barrage of open houses, laughter, tears, well wishes and the mandatory commencement speeches. Having had family members (including myself!) tapped to give one of these speeches on occasion, I have an appreciation for what a challenge it is to say something significant, succinct, touching, and funny in 12 minutes or less over a crappy PA system in a gym or outdoor stadium! There are a million ways commencement speeches can go wrong, but when they go right they can be amazing!
Survey Says...
On the long-running TV game show, “The Family Feud,” teams answer survey-based questions in a competition to earn points. A typical round starts with a question like, “Name something that is deep fried.” As the contestants respond with answers like, “Chicken” “French Fries” and “Donuts” the survey board reveals rank-ordered results of how successful they were at guessing what the majority of Americans had to say. (French Fries would be the #1 answer to the deep-fried question, by the way!)
We’re at a moment in our family life at Elmhurst CRC where we’re taking our own survey – not to start a feud or score points – but to help illuminate where God is leading us in the upcoming years...
“May”hem (and the Gift of Limits)
May is the busiest month of the year for most of us living in the burbs of Chicago: there’s the end-of-school-year rush, graduation parties, sports, college decisions, concerts etc… I’ve heard this phenomenon described as "May Madness" or "Mayhem*," or around ECRC I’ve even heard “Maycember” in reference to the other busiest month of the year around church.
Hallelujah, Anyhow
Sometimes I feel the need to praise God, even when I don’t feel like it.
Have you ever felt like going to church would be hypocritical because you just weren’t feeling it? Ever been so sad, depressed, or weighed down that music just felt like noise?
I’ve been there, too! And yet, there has always come a moment for me when I know it’s time to praise God anyhow. Sometimes the next “Hallelujah” costs a lot.
Easter Gets Personal
Easter is a big day. Full of color, great music, and celebration. It’s legitimately the highlight of the year for me just as Jesus’ resurrection is the highlight of our faith. But as amazing as Easter Sunday can be, the Monday after Easter always feels strange and awkward. Unlike Christmas, where most of the population has time to linger and lean into an extended holiday period, the days after Easter force us back into business as usual.
On one level this bothers me: shouldn’t Easter change everything?!...