Author: Jason

  • Please & Thank You

    Please & Thank You

    The movie Unsung Hero is a true story about a family who lost everything and moved from Australia to the United States in search of opportunity. With six kids and no prospects, the Smallbone family comes together and learns to pray for what they need and give thanks for what they receive. They begin posting…

  • Becoming a Professional Giver

    Becoming a Professional Giver

    A professional giver. I’m not sure it’s something anyone aspires to when they are a little kid. A professional athlete or musician? Sure. But a professional giver? Is that even a thing? I first heard the term a few years ago from my mentor, Noah, who was challenging Kim and me to take things to the…

  • Horses vs. Hummingbirds

    Horses vs. Hummingbirds

    One of the main reasons I wrote the book Must Be Nice is because I compare myself to other people all the time. Social media exacerbates this, but honestly, I don’t need anybody’s help. I compare myself to other speakers, other artists, and authors. Both dead and alive. I compare myself and my house and my yard…

  • Saints & Superheroes

    Saints & Superheroes

    Batman is my favorite superhero. Wait, no, I think it’s Spiderman. Or maybe it’s Ironman? There’s something about superheroes that capture our imagination. The compelling backstories, colorful costumes, and superhuman powers all play a role. But I think the deeper connection is the virtue they embody and the example they set for us. Superheroes stand…

  • Enjoy the Woo!

    Enjoy the Woo!

    I think it’s safe to assume that physically, plunging down the first drop on a roller coaster feels a lot like riding a runaway train hurtling off a cliff. (Admittedly, I’ve never actually experienced the latter.) Even though our brains know the ultimate outcome of each event, both experiences will cause us to scream like that…

  • Working All Things for Good

    Working All Things for Good

    My wife took the beautiful photo that inspired this painting. There was something about this dandelion that captivated me.  He’s reaching the end of the line. He is weary, but remains proud and steadfast. Some called him a weed, disrupting the status quo and infecting the neighborhood. But he knows the truth. He has run his…

  • The Life-Changing Wisdom of the Cheetah

    The Life-Changing Wisdom of the Cheetah

    The cheetah is known for being fast. Really fast. It’s the fastest land mammal, achieving running speeds of up to 70 miles per hour. But what most people don’t know is that the cheetah can’t maintain those speeds for long. In fact, a cheetah spends very little of its time running. It needs to recuperate and build up…

  • Be Open to Something Better

    Be Open to Something Better

    I recently came across this in my photo stream. Part photo, part iPad drawing, it’s my original vision of the art studio I wanted to build as an addition to our home. This was exactly what I wanted; a little extra light-filled space added on to the home office already there. If I could have…

  • A Moonrise to Remember

    A Moonrise to Remember

    I pulled out a notebook and pushed aside the bowl of creamers and the container of jellies. My family was at one of our favorite breakfast spots, our go-to place for celebrating big milestones. This day was decidedly less joyful, however; more of an escape from a nightmare we recently experienced. A few miles away,…

  • Follow the Arrows

    Follow the Arrows

    In January of 2020, I was thisclose to giving up on my twenty-year dream of living in a lake home. Then the pandemic hit, making the decision all but irrelevant, considering the fact I calculated that if we didn’t figure out an alternative revenue stream to speaking, we’d be bankrupt by November. Instead, that became the month…