Have you noticed that we live in a world that is constantly telling us how to GET rich – how to acquire more money or things. But very, very few people are telling us how to BE rich – once you get rich, how to be good at being rich.

Our brains are meaning machines. We are wired in such a way that we have a desperate need to find meaning and make sense of life. Our minds will constantly try to bring meaning to things even when there is no meaning -- especially when we are hurt.

Everybody has a story of how they have been hurt by someone else. And if you don't - just wait! It's coming! The question is not "will I be hurt?" but rather "how will I deal with hurt when it happens?"

The first serious girlfriend I ever had was named Susan. We dated off and on throughout our adolescence. She was a kind person but through a series of events that I will tell you about on Sunday, she broke my heart. But it was in the wake of that season of my life that I began to see my faith more clearly. I began to understand that God was much bigger than the small church I grew up in. I learned that God can be found in many different ways – spiritual pathways.

This Sunday began a conversation called “Jenga: Finding God When the Pieces

of Life Come Crashing Down.”  It is a very personal conversation about some

of the difficult times in my spiritual journey, what I learned from those

situations, and how they may also help you.  

This first Sunday, I told the story of my friend Tim, how he died, and what

I learned about life because of that traumatic event.

Last time, the reluctant prophet made his way across Nineveh with a sermon that was half-baked at best. But in spite of Jonah’s lack of enthusiasm, Nineveh changes its ways and God relents his judgment on them.

One would think that Jonah would be thrilled. This is the greatest spiritual achievement of his ministry. But in yet another odd twist, Jonah is furious with God. And the reason he is angry might surprise you. The book ends with a genius twist that the first readers would not have seen coming.

No doubt Jonah is wondering why he is wasting his breath with these people. But, as we are discovering in this series, when Jonah is going down, God is up to something great. And the response of the people of Nineveh will be anything but expected.

This prayer offers some fascinating insights into what Jesus considered a healthy dialogue with our heavenly Father. I look forward to our conversation as we unveil the depths and beauty of these seemingly simple and short lines found in Matthew 6:7-13.

We begin the story of Jonah looking at how Jonah ran from God and the storm that followed him.

What if there was an MRI for the soul? What if I were able to sit in a doctor’s office and there was the truth -- not about my body -- but about my inward parts: my will, my mind, and the habits and appetites of my body? We are in a series of conversations about the soul. This lesson we will be looking at improving the health of our souls.