Junkyard Devotions

Welcome to my devotions page! Every few months I create a series of devotions built around various themes. These arrive in your email inbox and are short, easy to read stories and thoughts.

The first series was a road trip with Mary and Joseph as they walked to Bethlehem. Spoiler alert, a baby is born when they get there. You might’ve heard the story.

But I don’t tell that story, or any of the others, in the normal way. It’s grittier when a junkyard guy thinks about the story. It’s more human, less theological, with a touch of snarky humor. Imagine a Hallmark holiday movie, but the exact and total opposite. Like if The Chosen episodes were written by the Monty Python writers. Well, maybe that’s a stretch, but you get the idea.

The series have also explored Easter (Jesus walks to Jerusalem), a trip around the Mediterranean, a vacation with Jesus in Belize, and a pool hall in Jerusalem where Matthew, Mark, Luke and John inspire each other to write. Sound like nonsense to you? Well, you might be right. But read on and I’ll explain.

Using my extensive theological training that I’ve never had, I try to look between and behind the Scripture stories. Including things Scripture doesn’t specifically mention, but we can wonder about, since all these stories are about real people. (Like, why was Jesus so often a surly dinner guest on the way to Jerusalem?)  I get things wrong because, well, I’m human. But I’ve found my mistakes to be benign overall, and in some ways a mind bender that has us looking at Scripture differently (in a good way).

Two of my literary heroes, C.S. Lewis and J.R.R. Tolkien, explored the power of imagination. In his book Mere Christianity, C.S. Lewis famously wrote, “Reason is the natural organ of truth but imagination is the organ of meaning.” They understood myth to be an expression of that imagination. Myth wasn’t a lie — it was a story conveying a truth.

And that’s the point. Without explicitly saying so, they believed myth conveyed truth. Infused in the greatest myth is the story of Jesus. As Lewis more or less said, Christianity is a myth that really happened.

My devotions explore the same idea. Obviously I’m not Lewis or Tolkien. But I’m creating myths — the bartender in Jerusalem, the donkey who carried Mary, the tax collector who took money from Joseph, even the roadside ice cream salesman just outside Bethlehem. These are entirely mythical. I made them up. But the stories will, hopefully, convey truth.

Interested? They are entirely FREE and come with a money back guarantee. Point being, if you don’t like them, not much I can do about it. The best I can do is add an unsubscribe button at the bottom of each devotion, which sadly a few people use.

I’d love to have you along for the next journey. Every trip, more and more people are signing up. It’s up to three billion readers so far! But, yes, I’m rounding up.

Please sign up below!