We know that moment when someone became "Mom" or "Dad" to us. Not when we mastered swaddling or figured out sleep schedules—but something deeper. A protective instinct we didn't know existed suddenly emerged. Identity shifted before competence ever caught up. If you ask your child, "What do you want to be when you grow up?" try following up with, "Then what?" Because here's the truth: identity isn't a destination. It's not about arriving at a job title and stopping. It's about becoming.

In Almost Famous, rock journalist Lester Bangs snuck a profound, easily missed confession to his young protégé: "The only true currency in this bankrupt world is what you share with someone else when you're uncool." Parenting inevitably reveals how the older we get, the less cool we become. But, what could be more unnerving - like realizing a mirror works even when our eyes are closed – is our kids have a front-row seat to our harried moments of long days and late nights of our flawed humanity.

One of the best to kill the vibe of a perfectly good small group is a curriculum. We’ve all been there - discussion narrows, relationships find a polite lane, and learning becomes primarily cognitive. So, what if the “content” was your family (& couple of friends) rehearsing what you believe is true about God?

Arriving before daybreak to immerse myself in the Austin phenomenon that is SXSW, I joined a rising tide of die-hard live music fans. On this morning, everything changed in an instant and it had nothing to do with the performance.

The Church today is missing a great opportunity to be UNequally yoked. Of course, sameness isn’t bad. It’s just geared toward maintenance rather than growth.