Mike Vrabel and Tiger Woods are 50. So am I. Makes me think about success and vices at 50.

If you like stories of detectives (or journalists!) solving mysteries and who doesn't, you must read for your own pleasure how a New York Times reporter unmasked the anonymous founder of Bitcoin. Published today! Gift article: www.nytimes.com/2026/04/08/b...

With “Days of Ash,” U2 sounded out the themes of Lent. With “Easter Lily” they give musical voice to the sounds of Easter. I already loved U2 plenty. Now I love them with the love of the church calendar—which is a lot! open.spotify.com/album/1DY06Z...

Oh my good Lord—they have done it again! Another surprise EP, this one released at midnight Eastern time on Good Friday! (And I just finalized the book with an appended epilogue on their surprise Ash Wednesday EP Days of Ash!)

This is worth learning about if you were unfamiliar with it like I was. It's a description of the reality dating show with people with autism. Gift article: www.nytimes.com/2026/04/02/m...

My Minneapolis pastor wife says she is going to use this in her Easter Sermon about the need for resurrection.

Elizabeth Bruenig reviews a book that touts rational and scientific reasons to believe in God's existence. But she says belief in God is more about sensing beauty and love and justice are connected to something lastingly true. Gift article: www.theatlantic.com/ideas/2026/0...

David Brooks on introspection: ineffective forms (archeological, confabulations, brooding, self-absorbed, depressed, anxious) and effective forms (noticing emotions, correspondence with truer narratives). Gift article: www.theatlantic.com/ideas/2026/0...

"Such leaders will speak fluently of capabilities, timelines and kill chains. They will have no language for resentment, dishonor, loyalty or grief — and they will discover, too late, that wars are made of these as much as of steel and fire." Gift article: www.nytimes.com/2026/03/29/o...

David Brooks's magnum opus on leadership, "America Needs a Trimmer," March 25, 2026. It's an excellent long essay rooted in historical observations on how to lead with wisdom long-term. There's alot of overlap with what I teach. Gift article: www.theatlantic.com/ideas/2026/0...

Joshua 3:7-8 And the Lord said to Joshua "Tell the priests who carry the ark of the covenant: ‘When you reach the edge of the Jordan’s waters, go and stand in the river." "The water didn’t part until they waded out into the water" — John M. Perkins RIP vimeo.com/19282223

Civil rights veteran and evangelical hero John Perkins has died.

Nice profile of the positive family life of the Minnesota Wild captain Jared Spurgeon who has played for the Wild for 16 years. Gift article: www.nytimes.com/athletic/710...

The Big 5 test is about twice as accurate as the Meyers-Briggs Type Indicator for predicting life outcomes, placing the usefulness of the MBTI test halfway between science and astrology. Any psychologist will tell you, the Meyers-Briggs is mostly bullshit. powerofusnewsletter.com/p/why-are-we...

I am not picking on this particular coach but too often see the abusive, arbitrary, lack-of-statistical-analysis, yanking players in coaching. The video by Nick of bballbreakdown is a master class in exposing it. youtu.be/knTaM4YcrZ8?...

I loved the posthumously published collection of writings "History Matters" by David McCullough (Sept 2025). He is one of those superb mentors from afar—inspiring on leadership, courage, writing, art, great books, and history.

"UK confirms Russia poisoned Navalny in prison with rare toxin" www.gov.uk/government/n...

The good thing about social media, podcasts, and YouTube is that you realize you're not alone about a thoughtful idea. I mean that sincerely. I meet people in real life who say "No one speaks up about this!" And I'm like, "What? Tons of people say that."

New 1 hour lecture I recorded today: Nehemiah: Good Leadership in Response to Destruction youtu.be/z3FZIzrsbhE

Man shot by federal agent in south Minneapolis this morning, witnesses say

Local media here trying to get to the bottom of the same questions I was asking. youtu.be/vvmbiaBZ5_Y?...

Minneapolis city ranking of all U.S. cities: #2 happiest #2 biking #3 parks #6 fittest

A solid history of Minnesota here. "Trump’s Fight With Minnesota Is About More Than Immigration. The state embodies a civic ideal that the administration in Washington wants to discredit." Jan 16, 2026. By Charles Homans Free gift article: www.nytimes.com/2026/01/16/m...

Superb sophisticated moral reflection on AI drawing on the book of Genesis. "What Is The "Divine Image" in the Age of AI?" Rav Soloveitchik's Tale of Two Adams Second Voice and Zohar Atkins Dec 16, 2025 open.substack.com/pub/secondvo...

Neighbor families caring for a grieving family in 2025. Free to read. www.startribune.com/a-minneapoli...

Your must-read of the day (with tissues): In the months since Fletcher was fatally shot during at Annunciation Catholic School, the Merkels have clung to everyday relics of their second child’s brief, full life. Whatever they’re feeling, they’ve learned how large their village has become.

A pastor can't find younger leaders for the church board. I wondered about the culture. "My kids like Chipotle burritos, zero sugar A&W Root Beer and Cream Soda, Takis, Scandinavian Swimmers gummy candy, and brownies. Would your age 65+ board be open to meetings with those?"

Excellent tribute to Dan Treier

Fun defense here of audiobooks. Gift article: www.nytimes.com/2025/12/21/b...

“We’re not Jewish,” Brady said when I asked him about this. “But I think we’re into everything. . . . I don’t know what I believe. I think there’s a belief system, I’m just not sure what it is.” www.nytimes.com/2015/02/01/m... January 2015. Gift article.

"Sacks established empathy as a quality every good doctor should possess, enshrining the ideal through his stories ... [But] His approach set the template for a branch of writing and thinking that made it seem as if the natural arc of illness involved insight and revelation."

"adult world-class performance is associated with limited discipline-specific practice, increased multidisciplinary practice, and gradual early progress." "Recent discoveries on the acquisition of the highest levels of human performance" (18 Dec 2025). www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...

Proud to have learned from and admired Jeff Thorne since high school. Preparation, multiple sports, research, class, integrity, character, leadership. Always in the best sense, a captain. Here is a gift link to the Chicago Tribune article about him. www.chicagotribune.com/2025/12/11/f...

Kristin Lavransdatter novel trilogy resources in thread below. (I'm 1/3 in to it).

Finished "Slouching Towards Bethlehem" by Joan Didion (1968). Well-paced essays mostly based in California but also one about Las Vegas weddings, another about Hawaii, and the last one about being in your twenties in New York City. Recommended.

Incorrigible coach behavior at age 50: when my pickup basketball team loses or soccer team is down at halftime, I ask my teammates what adjustments we should consider making. They look at me like "Are you serious?" Yes, sadly, I am.

Dad with 15-year-old daughter activities: Planted 75 daffodil bulbs and 75 tulip bulbs, $30 total from Aldi). Used all our extra Christmas lights on a front tree she climbed. Rebound for her as she practices shooting 3's at park and YMCA. Ride as she gets driving hours in.

Here in Minnesota, high school kids can take college courses (PSEO) easily online or in person paid by the state. Undergrad students can take courses that contribute to shortening a master's degree. Everything is in a hurry.

So you can now click on a person's profile on X and then click on the "Joined [month year]" and it will tell you where the account is based. (In my brief exploration, it has been unremarkable because the people I follow and repost are who they say they are).

I played and my kids played high school baseball, softball, basketball, soccer, football, ultimate, cross country, and Nordic skiing. I'm just learning some people focus on hypertrophy (bigger muscles), body fat percentage, and body building. Those are rarely mentioned in sports.

One of our kids is an engineering major in college. What a great tradition in this field that most companies offer paid summer internships after junior year. Applying helps get students moving toward careers. BUT often you have to know someone inside to get past the AI filter.

Position Posting: Bethel Seminary, St. Paul, Minnesota Program Director for Competency-Based Theological Education Program staffcareers-bethel.icims.com/jobs/2186/pr...

Taylor University Tenure Track in Christian Ministries www.schooljobs.com/careers/tayl...

My kids also feel sorry for kids whose parents force them to attend their siblings' sporting events. The siblings are bored. And the player doesn't care if their siblings attend or not. Youth sports take a lot of time. The siblings don't need to be subjected to it.

My teenagers see parents who have daily "family dinner" as a red flag. The parents don't attend their kids' school activities. They don't provide rides to and from school. The parents are rich. The kids are nice. The kids can't wait to leave home.

Finished "The Widening of God's Mercy: Sexuality Within the Biblical Story" by Christopher B. Hays and Richard B. Hays (Yale U. P.), Sept 2024. They rightly argue the trajectory of the Bible is to include outsiders. But despite the subtitle, they don't delve into sexuality.

"the first-ever empirical study of the American rabbinate across denominations, released this week by the Atra Center for Rabbinic Innovation." "58% identify as women, 30% as men, and 12% as nonbinary. An estimated 51% identify as LGBTQ." www.jta.org/2025/11/12/r...

Pope Leo XIV extols the value of movies. "Entering a cinema is like crossing a threshold. In the darkness and silence, vision becomes sharper, the heart opens up, and the mind becomes receptive to things not yet imagined." deadline.com/2025/11/pope...

I thought this 15-minute compilation of advice from people who are 100 years old was great. Lots of wisdom to ponder. youtu.be/QzQhtsTdHhM?... (May 2025 Business Insider)

A lot of good insights and wisdom from Gordo Byrn in this interview based on his experiences as a triathlete in his 30's and then pausing and then now again in his 50's about endurance fitness and a fulfilling life with family. alancouzens.substack.com/p/msmrl-6-go...