Sterling Griggs

I am serving as camp pastor at a placed called Laurel Ridge in the NC moutains this week, so today I decided to go hiking on some trails in an effort to keep from gaining 15 pounds from all the camp food I’m going to be consuming. These trails aren’t new to me - I’ve hiked them countless times over the years as I have been up here as a camper, counselor, and pastor, so when I approached the trail head I was more than ready to get my sweat on and burn some calories. There are four different trails and they are labeled according to color. Yellow is the longest, red is the steepest, green is not as challenging, and blue takes you to some scenic overlooks. I decided to start at the red/yellow point and then venture down the red trail. I thought about the yellow trail because it’s the one I remember the best from years past, but I wanted to give myself a bit of a challenge since I am such an outdoorsman (cue the sarcasm). The initial decent on the red trail was pretty steep and I new that w...

This past Monday morning June 19, 2017, a couple of trailers and a whole host of people showed up at our town home in Southport, NC, to help us pack our lives up and move us up to Wilmington, NC. For several hours we sweated, laughed, grunted at ridiculously heavy pieces of furniture, and laughed some more. Our journey to Wilmington began towards the end of last summer with a bit of a nudge. Both my wife and I sensed that God was moving us in that direction, but we weren't exactly sure why. My position at the church I was serving in was going and growing well - I truly enjoyed being both a Teaching Pastor and Connections Pastor there, helping people plug in and take their next step with God. Even though my wife is a nursing professor at UNCW, she was okay driving back and forth a few days a week. Our kids had all of their friends in Southport and we lived in a really cool community. Why move? God continued to nudge us and we continued to pray for His wisdom and guidance. At th...

When it comes to politics, I typically keep my opinions close to the vest, and that is not really going to change now. As a registered Independent, I love the feeling of not being key holed into one particular party or ideology. I'm a maverick, a renegade who arrives at the voting booth on a Harley wearing a leather vest while the crowds part as I swagger my way to the voting booth. Or at least I like to see myself that way. In reality, I am just like everyone else when it comes to politics. I have to make an informed decision and so do you. This is where it starts to get tricky. This election cycle is unlike any I have witnessed in my 46 years on earth, at least from the years that I can remember. I purposefully don't get too involved in political discussions because I value healthy relationships and a stable blood pressure. Besides, I've never engaged in a political debate where either side has emerged saying, " You're exactly right! Silly me, I see it your ...

Several years ago I became the new youth pastor at a church in Yadkinville, NC. In case you've never heard of Yadkinville or you have no idea how to pronounce it, the "d" is silent and the "i" is more like a hard "u", so it's pronounced "Ya-kun-vull" by those who really know who to speak Yadkin-ese, the local dialect there. Anyhow, the students there were all awesome and a little on the country side, which was cool because it challenged me to be a little less "city" and uptight about certain things. Early on in my time of service there, I realized that I had a group of guys that were gifted at talking junk. You know, the kind where you playfully goad other people verbally to engage in physical challenges, all the while strutting like a peacock and "bowing up" to them. If you don't understand, then you have to accept that it's a guy thing and it's just what we do at times. There was one kid in the group...

Have you ever seen a big, strong weight lifter scream like a little girl when he sees a spider? Or how about a seasoned defense attorney freak out over a paper cut to her index finger? Maybe you haven't, but you can certainly picture the scenario in your head and have probably seen something similar. We live in a world where we all want to be seen as tough and fear is a taboo to be avoided. How many movies do you see where the coward is the hero? Yet in spite of our best efforts, if we were to sit in a support group circle together and allow our defenses to come down, we would all admit to being scared of plenty of things. The possibility of our health or the health of our children being compromised Losing a job and being unable to support our families What the future of our country will look like, which means we either have Trump-phobia, Hillary-phobia, Bernie-phobia, Republican-phobia, Democrat-phobia, etc. ad nauseum. Or maybe we are afraid of what we see as internationa...

He looked at me in all seriousness and said, "I honestly believe it was God's will for me to leave my wife and kids to be with her . She makes me happy, happier than I've ever been in my life. When I'm with her, I feel fulfilled, as if the missing pieces of my life have suddenly been put into place. God wants me to be happy, right?" Pretty cringe-worthy statements there, huh? Maybe you're thinking that there is no way in the world God's will is for someone to get a divorce because he's in love with another woman, and I am right there with you. But the problem we all face at some point is that we struggle to know what God's will is in the first place. Truth be told, the foundation of our desire to know God's will isn't too far off this guy's desire to "upgrade" his choice in wives - we want God's will to benefit us. In other words, we know what we want and we hope and pray that God will rubber stamp it for us, hence maki...

" I'm so excited, and I just can't hide it / I'm about to lose control and I think I like it. " That song by The Pointer Sisters was popular back in my day. Maybe you heard Jessie Spano desperately singing it on Saved by the Bell , or you heard it played ad infinitum on the radio station in your car. Truthfully, I can't stand that song, but it's one of those that gets stuck in your heard and won't seem to leave. Now you're gonna be singing it to yourself the rest of the day. Sorry about that. Even though that song was not my favorite, it resonates somewhat with my soul (I know, the song is about losing control in a relationship which is whole other ball of wax, but bear with me). Think back to your last day of school or what it felt like to finish that final exam before summer break. I used to literally scream with joy at the top of my lungs when I was done. School had a controlling issue on my life - it owned me for the better part of the y...

The other week, right before Easter, a long-time friend shared an article with me about the death of Jesus. The author of the article asked the question, "Why did Jesus die?", and the reason he gave wasn't quite the one I was expecting. He said that Jesus died primarily to show us what love looks like. Now I don't disagree that dying for someone is a supreme act of love, but in the case of Jesus it was more than just one shining moment that put Him on that cross. When Jesus went to the cross, He went as a sacrifice for our sins. In other words, if Jesus didn't die on the cross and then rise from the grave, we don't have forgiveness of sins. Did love compel Him to die? Yes! But His blood actually purchased something for you and me. The cross stands as more than just an example of affection. As I mulled these things over in my mind, I began to wonder about what the word sacrifice really means. Sometimes we say that we are going to make sacrifices in our li...

As a leader, don't you wish that people liked you and respected your every move? I mean, how easy would it be for you if every decision that you made was greeted with applause and compliance? That would be awesome and spare you a few gray hairs and stomach ulcers! But if that were the case - if everyone that you led was okay with where you were leading them - then you would be called a tour guide or entertainment specialist, not leader. The very definition of being a leader implies that you have to navigate people over difficult terrain because, if left up to their own, those under your direction would wander aimlessly. And these people that you lead will sometimes push back against your vision and decisions, which makes it all the more challenging to lead them. Let's face it, being a leader is hard. You are never going to be the most popular person in the room and your every move will be second guessed by a number of people. As a result, it is up to you how you choose...

If you've only listened to Christian radio for 15 minutes in your entire life, you have undoubtedly heard the song by Casting Crowns entitle The voice of Truth:   Oh what I would do to have the kind of faith it takes to climb out of this boat I'm in, onto the crashing waves. It is one of an encyclopedic number of songs that laud the faith that it must have taken for Peter to step out of the boat and walk on water toward Jesus when a storm was raging all around him. Sure, when he took his eyes off of Jesus, Peter began to sink but it was Jesus who gripped him by the hand and allowed him to stand in the midst of the storm. ( Matthew 14:22-33 ) Not only is this story recounted in music but I've also heard it preach countless times in sermons. If we could just have enough faith to get out of the boat and trust Jesus, our faith would be stronger and our lives would be richer. So what about the other 11 guys that stayed in the boat? Were they just a bunch of weak dude...

As I herded the kids into the car this morning it was all I could do to keep my eyes open so they would not freeze from the bitter cold and brisk wind gusts. For those of you who are up north, keep your comments to yourself about how "This really isn't THAT cold!" Yes it is that cold for a southern boy living on the coast, so leave me alone. Anyway, just as I was about to put the car in gear I felt a rush of cold air behind me. I turned to see that my five year old daughter decided to push open her door, just because she could. Quickly, I reminded her that we don't open the car doors once we are inside the car unless we had reached our destination and daddy has put the car in park. With that said, I backed out of the driveway and as I headed down the road to an alarm sounded, telling me that a door was not properly shut. Can you guess whose door it was? With impatience starting to hover all over me, I stopped the car and ordered my five year old to open and shut ...

Have you been reading the news lately? Not a whole lot of positives are being splashed on the headlines, but then that's no surprise. Syria has done some pretty awful things to their own people, but then no one is really sure who actually authorized what so the world is at sort of a standstill on how to respond. Some want to bomb them to send a message, but without all the facts what good will that do? Then there's Egypt, another big mess. There were a much bigger deal before someone in Syria began gassing fellow Syrians, but they still have many problems that no seems to know how to work out. Hundreds are dead and the government is no longer trusted, but whose to blame for all of the problems? Just where does the buck stop? I'm glad I'm not the one making national and global political decisions because there seems to be no cut-and-dry answers out there. Diplomacy is always a good first choice, but when no one is listening it's hard to sit back and just tell ot...

I realize that by giving a blog post this kind of a title, it makes me sound like an old man. And while I'm really not all that old by today's standards, I do realize just how far a couple of decades have removed me from the twenty-somethings of today. This generation faces most of the same issues, challenges, and problems as I did back in the 1990's, yet they operate under the magnifying glass of technology which serves to amplify even the most trivial of information. I often freak myself out when I make a comment or give direction to a younger person because I find that I sound more and more like a parent, which is really not a bad thing except for the fact that I realize I am becoming that person whom I often rolled my eyes at once he or she began to speak. Nevertheless, I'm gonna go there. There is a lot of advice floating around out there, found not just in the sphere of graduation speeches and the like but well beyond them. No one that I know wants this or an...

Unless you've been living in a remote cave somewhere in Patagonia, then you are aware that there's a whole lot of stuff going on in America. The economy is still shaky, health care remains in critical condition, the NSA is all up in our business, and no one seems to know who is actually telling the truth anymore (as if we ever really knew in the first place). Scale this down to a local level and the problems seem to be magnified. For instance, in my great state of North Carolina our state legislators' decisions to underfund an educational system that is already lagging behind have left people on both sides of the political aisle shaking their heads in astonishment. What is going on here? If you have internet access then you have been bombarded with countless opinions as to what is happening in America, both on a national and local level. Some insights are filled with facts and figures, yet most are knee jerk reactions to whatever sleight may be perceived. I, too, have be...

When I was in grade school my parents bought me and my brothers some thick plastic skateboards that we all called "banana boards" because that's pretty much what they were shaped like. These boards were indestructible and me and my brothers would ride them down our inclined street over and over again. Sometimes we would stand while riding them but I would usually sit on mine like I was driving a fast car. The feeling of cruising to the bottom was exhilarating, even a bit scary. It was so easy to just pull of my feet and let gravity speed me down that hill. Of course, once the ride was over I found that it was a bit of a drag having to walk all the way back up the hill to the starting point. While the ride itself was awesome, it didn't last very long. The walk back up the hill felt like an eternity. But I knew that if I wanted to enjoy another ride, I needed to put in the work to make it happen. Sometimes life feels much more like work than anything else. And let...

Simplicity. Scaling back from the tangled mess that is our lives and narrowing our focus on what's most important. That's what's missing from so many of the lives of people that I know, including myself. We pride ourselves with our work effort, how much we can accomplish in a day or a week, and reward ourselves with mini-getaways that promise escape from the chaos that is our lives. It's as if we are resigned to believe that the daily grind is what we should expect until we've earned the next brief respite of escape. But should simple be the exception instead of the rule? Bear with me for a few moment of seemingly ridiculous reflection. My wife and I have been on a bit of a nostalgia kick lately and we've gathered most of our ammo from television shows. I know, not exactly the best source for unbiased and healthy perspective, but there is a lot to learn from the past. The Hardy Boys book series, learning about our local history, and shows like Little House...

Do you remember when you were a little kid, playing all day without a care in the world. At least that's how it seemed at the time, right? I can recall in the summers leaving my house in the morning with  my two brothers and playing in the neighborhood all day, only returning home when we heard my mom call us in for supper. I didn't have a care in the world. All of my food, medical care, clothing, and housing were provided for me and I never gave it a second thought. I was a kid with not a care or worry in the world. Fast forward a few decades and that kid is but a distant memory. I'm now married with four children of my own, shouldering responsibilities that I never dreamed of having. Taxes, bills, medical costs, clothing, and don't even ask me how much we spend on groceries. All of these add up and at some point in life another more sinister concern likes to jump on top of the pile - worry. Simply put, worry sucks. It sucks the life right out of you. There are al...

It wasn't all that long ago that I was a pretty healthy and durable young buck. Okay, it was actually more than just a little while ago, but there was a time when I thought I could take on - and defeat - anything the world threw my way. Since I was little on the shorter side (the masculine word for petite) I tried very hard to compensate for my lack of size. I did not possess an inferiority complex, I just wanted to make sure that no one underestimated me. Whenever I think about times in the past when I "proved" to others just how capable I was, one incident always stands out in my mind. My freshmen your in high school I had the dubious distinction of being the youngest of three boys at the same school. As a result, I was always the little brother, my identity suddenly expunged from being an original. To top it off, I was born with a heart defect that caused an across the board reaction in my doctors when it came to sports - "No way!" they said. So, not only ...

By the time the hour and a half was up, I was feeling a little beat up to say the least. My wife and I had just completed our first session of Dave Ramsey's Financial Peace University and I can honestly say that I was humbled to the core. Realizing how under-prepared we were for the future felt like a punch to the solar plexus, but at the same time the feeling of resolve we left with over how our future could be was exhilarating. I have spent a good portion of my life trying to be in control of my circumstances and future. Sure, there were times when I found myself in a bind or two, but for the most part I figured I had things covered. I still trusted God to provide, but of course if I'm honest those times were situational at best. When I couldn't get it done, off to my prayer closet I would go. Boy, have I had things backwards! One of the great lies that this world will throw at you is that you can provide everything for yourself. With a little grit, spit, and stick-...

Have you ever been to a restaurant that was super busy and your server never could quite refill your tea fast enough or get your food out soon enough? First world problems, right? For some people, minor inconveniences like these drive them absolutely crazy, to the point that they will stiff their server on the tip or even chew them out for the poor service. You've seen the guy, the one who keeps looking around for his server, visibly fuming because his food isn't ready, unable to keep his ridiculous comments to himself. Maybe that's you. Having been a waiter before I can totally sympathize with servers. What happens in the kitchen is beyond their control, yet they are the "face" of the restaurant and so they become the proverbial whipping post when service is poor. It is my strongest belief that everyone, before they finish high school or college, should have to wait tables at least once just to gain a little bit of perspective. We could all probably benefit ...