Dear Saints of Valley Church, On July 20, 1969, the whole world held its breath as it watched Neil Armstrong descend from the Lunar Module and take the first human steps on the surface of the Moon. His words became etched in history: “That’s one small step for man, one giant leap for mankind.” While…
Posts from 2025
Howdy! I got a story for ya’, Valley Family! Our son Ethan is in the Corp of Cadets at Texas A&M. (Gig ‘Em!). Texas Aggies all wear a special ring. That’s how Aggies recognize each other all over the country and do their weird cheers, whoops and hand motions. I think Rita Hanna’s grandson goes…
Dear Saints of Valley Church, Before winning eight gold medals (and breaking seven world records) at the 2008 Olympics, Michael Phelps made a life-altering commitment: he would train every single day, with no exceptions, for five years straight. He didn’t skip practice for birthdays, vacations, or even Christmas. The pursuit of his life’s goal was…
Dear Saints of Valley Church, I remember planting an avocado pit when I was young in hopes of growing an avocado tree. I don’t think I even liked avocados at that age, but I was excited about the possibility of that pit from my dad’s dinner turning into a tree that would produce more avocados.…
Dear Saints of Valley Church, Think about how the world has changed over the last 1,800 years. In the second century, the Roman Empire ruled most of the world (with another 800 years passing before the first European contact with North America). Not only was this a time before electricity, but even before the invention…
One day I was in a packed studio audience at the HP facility (now Apple HQ), waiting for a national broadcast to begin. The other Valley Church pastors and I had a great view with front row seats. The host, Bill Dallas, looking good in a nice dress shirt, walked out just before the show…
Dear Saints of Valley Church, After over five decades of sharing the gospel in turnip fields, ten-thousand-seat auditoriums, and churches around the world, the evangelist Gypsy Smith was asked, “Gypsy, I heard you preach over fifty years ago, and my how you blessed my heart then. I have never forgotten it, but again tonight, how…
Remember “Show and Tell” from elementary school? Can you remember any funny or cringy experiences doing that? Imagine standing up in front of your first-grade classroom and talking about the concept of a small, high energy, short haired animal that can, and often does, fit into a purse. If someone had never seen a Chihuahua…
Dear Saints of Valley Church, One of the many ways Amanda and I are different is our timing of when to fill up the car with gas. Amanda was raised by a wise father who taught her to fill up the car once she reached about a quarter tank. I was also raised by wise…
In our series “No Rival, No Equal” in the book of Colossians, we’ve likened the sufficiency of Christ to the beauty and unrivaled splendor of Mt. Everest. But ascending Mt. Everest, even with a team, is no easy feat. It presents climbers with an intense challenge of extreme cold, dangerously low oxygen levels, and treacherous…