the awesomeness conspiracy

This morning I was awakened before 6am by the sound of a Russian road crew working to patch a semi-paved street outside my hotel window. It gave me my first bit of free time since arriving in Ivanovo to write a brief report on this trip for you faithful followers of The Awesomeness Conspiracy. It […]

Since today is Mother’s Day, and since I’ve fallen behind on new content here at The Awesomeness Conspiracy, I decided to dig into the archives and re-post an article from Mother’s Day 2011. I wrote the following “Letter To Mom” as a sermon I delivered to the congregation at First United Methodist Church in Williamstown, […]

A minute ago everything happened all at once. A minute ago I came kicking, bawling, gasping into the air full of questions and answers. A minute ago I made my first friend in a playpen on her mom’s porch speaking languages we didn’t know. We’re still friends because we remember what we said in a […]

The Awesomeness Conspiracy Poet Laureate Anna Webb weighs in on the death of MTV’s Buckwild star Shain Gandee’s death and why it matters: You can follow this and more of Anna’s videos on her YouTube page. Think what you want about MTV, reality programming, or seemingly self-indulgent people who apparently bring tragedy upon themselves, we […]

There’s a story in the Bible where Jesus talks about a field where a man planted a crop of wheat. While he was sleeping, an enemy snuck into the field and planted weeds. The wheat and the weeds grew together, intermingled. The man’s servants offered to pick through the field and remove all the weeds. […]

In just a little less than two months, I will be traveling with a team to Ivanovo, Russia, to work at a ministry center for older orphans–teenagers and young adults who have recently exited the Russian orphanage system. While orphans everywhere face innumerable challenges, orphans in Russia are especially vulnerable. Many find themselves lost in […]

For something like the 7th or 8th time in as many years, I’ll be participating today and tomorrow alongside youth & friends from my church in World Vision’s 30-Hour Famine. From 7:00 this morning through 1:00 tomorrow afternoon, we’re joining together in a period of fasting to raise money for World Vision’s hunger and poverty […]

From our Bard-in-Residence: Another Steve Peck original, “Amos.” As in the prophet. Dig it: Steve will be part of a Johnny Cash Tribute this coming Saturday (Feb. 23) to benefit the Children’s Home Society of WV at Sixpence Pub & Eatery in Parkersburg WV. Great music for a great cause. Learn more on the Event […]

My old school chum Harry started an interesting conversation yesterday on his Facebook page where he posted this simple statement: “Heaven is more a journey than a destination.” For most of us, I suspect we generally conceive of Heaven as the destination. Life is the journey that takes us there. But the more I dwell […]

As I was working this morning to prepare for a guest-speaking gig at my home church this coming Sunday I was reminded of the following post, which first appeared exactly four years ago today. Ironically this morning provided another one of those midwinter glimpses of spring we get here in the Mid-Ohio Valley. As we […]

As I continue to work on new content for The Awesomeness Conspiracy, I hope you’ll enjoy another Throwback Thursday post from the archives. The following article, “Flyfishing with Jesus,” was originally published June 11, 2008. As for me, I’m heading out for a little mid-winter Elk River therapy today. Enjoy, and have an awesome day! […]