A Personal Update

When I put up the first post on this blog in June 2018, I was writing for my local community in Ireland—the friends and neighbours that I see and interact with in my daily life. (This article by Laura Lundergren casts a great vision for this, and this one by Tim Challies helped me commit to keep going regularly). I still write for those same friends and neighbours, but last year people visited this site from 124 countries and I have to admit that this thing called the internet is still surprising me. All I can say is that whoever you are and wherever you are, thank you for coming to this little corner of the world wide web. Your visits and comments have been encouraging and motivating. I hope you’ve been encouraged as well. This is my 200th blog post, so I’d like to take the opportunity to share a personal update:

As you may know already, last June I signed a contract with The Good Book Company to write a book called “Dream Small”. In December, I turned in the final manuscript. I’m quite anxious to share it with you, but that’s not how it works—these things take time. The release date has been set for the 9th of January, 2023.

As the title suggests, the book will be a small one. The main idea is to encourage us to direct our dreams at what matters most. So much of what the world around us values and encourages us to aim our lives and ambitions at is actually not that important in the light of eternity. Many of the most precious treasures and significant opportunities are actually found in things that are often overlooked as being too ordinary or too small to matter—things like quiet communion with God and sacrificial service for the “least of these” that Jesus spoke of. The Bible is very clear that in God’s kingdom, the ladder of lasting success is not pointed up to personal glory, but down towards love and service. The point of “Dream Small” is that we should be ambitious with our dreams—in the right direction. I can’t wait to share it with you!

In other news, our family is doing well, and we are enjoying the re-opening of society in Ireland after two years of restrictions. It feels strange now to go back to the events and activities that used to be the normal rhythms of our life. It also feels good—and tiring as well—but we are thankful. I’m just about to turn 40, so I guess that means I’m on top of the hill now. But the view behind me is so full of the faithfulness and love of God—even in the darkest valleys—that I am not afraid of the other side. I just want to make sure I keep my dreams for the years ahead pointed at the things that matter most.