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My Ducati Zippo
I have a zippo because they’re cool and I’m cool. I’m particularly cool because I have a Ducati zippo to commemorate my love for my Ducati(s). This morning I yelled across the house to my firstborn “ARWEN!! WHAT SHOULD I WRITE ABOUT??”She came into my home office where I was sitting in my worn captain’s chair recently relocated from the living room, sat down at my desk … Continue reading My Ducati Zippo
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Goodbudget App
I’m doing a series at Venue called Rebound which is largely about how to rebound financially from this disaster we find ourselves in and my thoughts turn to one of the best decisions my wife and I ever made, which was to go through Dave Ramsey’s Financial Peace University. Oh my goodness what where we could have been at right now if we’d have done it … Continue reading Goodbudget App
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Mexico, Oh Mexico
I miss Mexico. I miss when I could get on a plane and go places that were fun. I miss when I used to be able to hang out with whomever I wanted to and decide for myself if I wanted to get sick and stuff:) But I mostly miss Mexico. Erin and I try to get away at least once a year with no kids because … Continue reading Mexico, Oh Mexico
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Highly Evolved
Men are so great. I know I have to push past society’s deal where we’re not allowed to celebrate men because of the infamous deeds of some, and no one would bring a backlash if I’d titled this Women are Great except my wife who would be like “womEn or womAn???” (and rightly so). We live in the society of the underdog with undercurrents of fairness and … Continue reading Highly Evolved
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Prince of Peace
Gallup recently released a poll about the fall of mental health in America from 2019 to 2020. The survey across the States that spanned nineteen demographics from age to ethnicity to income to political persuasion to married status was a shocking, but not unexpected revelation of the state of mental health. What was a surprise to many was that there was only one group of people rating … Continue reading Prince of Peace
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Masks and Bank Robbers
I’m an optimist. If I’m shovelling something nasty I’m looking for a pony…Now as a child I was a pretty severe asthmatic so wearing a mask is not something that I find fun, particularly when I’m uncertain masks do anything to help with viruses according to the types of research that develops and critiques approval of drugs etc. I think they make us feel safer and … Continue reading Masks and Bank Robbers
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Not a Lemming
Ever read history and wonder why entire nations were so stupid? I have. “Idiots!” Is what I think, followed closely by “That would never happen HERE, that would never happen to ME!”Perhaps the fact that the arrogance it would take for Thought #2 to so closely follow the very obvious missing of the lesson should let me in on the insight, but alas, it rarely does. The thought … Continue reading Not a Lemming
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It’s a Joy to Shovel
For some reason I thought I’d have to shovel snow forever because I only had daughters? Before you ladies lash out and give me the “equal rights” speech, keep in mind I live with five of your kind and have heard it all before. Personally I would love to give up any rights if someone else wanted to shovel the driveway for me. Also it might be noted some … Continue reading It’s a Joy to Shovel
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I Would Miss Trump
Now to be clear I only on occasion call Trump Trump and not “Mr Trump” or “President Trump” because he’s not MY president. I’m Canadian. I’m a bit old school when it comes to honouring those in authority and never refer to Premier Kenney as anything less than Mr. I need to honour him whether I agree with him or not because I can only reap … Continue reading I Would Miss Trump
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Signed Stevie G Jersey
I wholeheartedly believe one is more blessed to give than to receive. Venue people ask me all the time “How can we pray for you pastor?” “Just pray for ____ instead. I’m good (I think?)”…is what I used to say. The Kopes are Dutch and self sufficient in the extreme. It is much easier for me to give than to receive something, which is mostly a great trait … Continue reading Signed Stevie G Jersey
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Arwen’s Red Jetta
I’m very proud of my oldest daughter Arwen. She managed to save up birthday, babysitting and work money to the total of nearly nine thousand dollars by the time she turned eighteen. I didn’t have that kind of money when I was eighteen. We are budgeters, which means we shop around for the best prices of insurance, the best prices of food, heck the best prices of everything … Continue reading Arwen’s Red Jetta
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Snow Snow Go Away
Not sure what the weather will be like when this article goes live, but it’s snowy and cold when I write this. I think in less than a week my wife’s attitude went from “Beautiful fall! We had such a long summer!” To “winter came so soon!!”Only my youngest daughter is excited because of the snow, even if she has to walk home in it, but … Continue reading Snow Snow Go Away
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The God Complex
I think we think we’re God sometimes…We pat ourselves on the back for how wise and all knowing we are (internet), we have a good moment parenting, we experience love, we wake up early and exercise before the sun comes up (theoretically), but we forget sometimes that seeing something or experiencing something is not nearly the same thing as creating something in the first place. God blesses us with children we think we somehow created, when … Continue reading The God Complex
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Little Foxes
“Catch all the foxes, those little foxes, before they ruin the vineyard of love” Song of Solomon 2:15Little foxes can do a fair amount of damage if there are enough of them. Little foxes can be those funny mindsets we travel through life with. When our mindsets are healthy the rest normally follows, but when they’re not it’s like trying to launch a space shuttle when … Continue reading Little Foxes
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“Perfect” Family
Our family is far from perfect. Mostly because they won’t do what I tell them to… (… is how most arguments go:)We all want a perfect family, but people aren’t robots and every time a giant corporation tries to take over the world with robots it never turns out well (in the movies that is). The problem is that if my family was perfect there wouldn’t be … Continue reading “Perfect” Family
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My Poor Yard
My neighbour Jackie and I have been watching Telus and their co-conspirators desecrate our yards for the past month or so. I began the journey to their fibre development of Coopers very smugly, looking back. I love fast internet and hate slow.. well.. anything, so I signed up for their free install into my yard. Ironically the small town we lived in previously began the fibre instal … Continue reading My Poor Yard
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Fear’s Greatest Hits
I recently preached a sermon called Leverage Love (Not Fear) at Venue as I thought about some of the issues we’re facing today. I think the problem today is not what everyone is talking about. It’s not Covid. The problem is fear. Covid is just another problem that the world has lots of. Generations before us faced problems with different names, generations after us will face problems … Continue reading Fear’s Greatest Hits
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Diesel Ducati Special Edition
So I filmed something for Venue when the pandemic started laughing about “Guys, if you didn’t need a motorcycle BEFORE this you don’t need one now.”One thing I love about myself is my sense of irony. Within a couple of weeks I had a motorcycle of course, so I had to film something else when we went to BC to get it along the lines … Continue reading Diesel Ducati Special Edition
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Neela is Great
Neela is my last daughter and Neela is great. One of her sisters showed us a video of her attempting to sing Twinkle Twinkle when she was tiny and it was so cute you’d push a lab puppy trying to lick you out of the way to see it again. THAT’S how cute it was. Neela is a precious bundle of awe and wonder that enters every room … Continue reading Neela is Great
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Katie is Great
Katie is my third daughter and Katie is great. Katie is smart. Like scary smart. I’ve always secretly wished I’d married someone dumber than I was and had dumber kids. It would be nice for people to nod in respect at me because of my intelligence rather than what they do now:Smile sympathetically at my wife and girls for having to do all the thinkin’, then address … Continue reading Katie is Great
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Ailish is Great
Ailish is my second daughter and Ailish is great. This should sum up her competence for you…Venue Church is three and a half years old. For the first couple of years I would write up the service orders and other things and send them out until one day I delegated it to her. From that moment on there were no more mistakes. Like EVER. The funny thing … Continue reading Ailish is Great
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Arwen is Great
Arwen is my first daughter and she’s great. Arwen has a way of rolling through life getting tricky things accomplished while somehow creating no waves. Now our four girls occasionally make waves and fight with each other, but Arwen for the most part has a way about her that eases tension while getting stuff done. Her mind is a cutting one but it doesn’t make one feel cut if you … Continue reading Arwen is Great
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Erin is Great
Erin is my wife and she’s great. The first conversation I had with her impressed upon me the people intelligence she has. We were forming a band back in the day and she remarked “The bass player is great, but might not be in the best musical shape..”If an 8 on the enneagram like myself described him, it would have sounded like this:“He’s terrible.”She made it sound … Continue reading Erin is Great
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God of the Mountains
As a child growing up in a home where we talked about God I sort of assumed people who denied even his existence maybe just hadn’t thought about it that much?As an adult I still think the same thing:)I could get into some very real hangups people have with God, things I’ve struggled through like “How can a loving God allow pain?” (I landed on something called … Continue reading God of the Mountains
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When I’m an Old Man
“Erin, I’m going to be a ridiculously funny old man! I’m already ridiculously funny, but when I’m old….” This is a fairly normal type of marriage conversation for us before you get too alarmed on her behalf, she’s used to it. To be fair, she thought I was a whole lot cleverer before she saw my idea-material (The Simpsons) when we were dating, but I’ve tried to stay funny … Continue reading When I’m an Old Man
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Summer Jobs
I experienced something Monday morning I’ve never experienced before in quite that way…My two little girls rode their bikes to their summer job and I felt proud. One not conditioned in the Kope family might not quite know what I mean. When I was young I overhead a conversation at a Kope reunion that went something like this: “Hi this is my boyfriend ____.”“Hi, I’m ____ Kope. What do … Continue reading Summer Jobs
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Unconditional Acceptance
Even as I type the title idea it feels right to me because I’m Canadian, this idea that I need to unconditionally accept people. It feels right. But it’s wrong. In fact it couldn’t be more wrong and the scary part is that it feels so right, how can it be wrong?? I’ve already digressed into song lyrics that may or may not show that we … Continue reading Unconditional Acceptance
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Oh Canada…
Oh Canada. Sigh. 2020 will be a year to remember alright. I feel like it’s the Spring Break you wish you could forget minus the Spring Break. Who knew we were capable of panicking like little girls (I’m allowed to say that because I’ve fathered four of them:). Who knew we’d ever believe everything we watched on the news?Who knew we’d actually read what every FB troll ranted … Continue reading Oh Canada…
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Lead Yourself Well
I’m racking my brain to find a non covid related topic to laugh about and finding it difficult to do… I’m about done with this one thing inserting itself unannounced and uninvited into every single aspect of my life. Not the sickness itself, you understand, but the sickness of the drama it’s blown itself up into that demands all the air time. TALK ABOUT ME!!!!!I’ve talked with … Continue reading Lead Yourself Well
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If I Die I Die
So I did the responsible thing when my daughters were young and didn’t have a motorcycle. Actually it was Erin’s dream to have a Harley, but I was adamant that that never happen as I was “Unfit in the extreme to raise four daughters by myself!!”Now she has a Harley, but Harley is a dog our friends own. Several times a week I’ll ask the kids … Continue reading If I Die I Die
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The Potter’s House
I think the movie Ghost, which I’ve never seen any part of and have no desire to, has wrecked pottery for everyone. …which is a bit sad as pottery is useful for so many things and quite beautiful when one knows what they’re doing. Our friends the Petkaus live east of the Crossfield overpass and Rylee’s studio is called The Potter’s House. We were recently hanging out … Continue reading The Potter’s House
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Don’t Bother Pointing That Out
“Guys, if you didn’t need a motorcycle BEFORE covid, you don’t need one now”… is what I said about a week before I bought myself a motorcycle. In my defence I recorded the video on our Venue Youtube channel a week or two before it came out. So, two weeks. But there’s no getting around the fact I bought a bike. Some poor fool in Kelowna (actually he … Continue reading Don’t Bother Pointing That Out
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Dream Again
I think it’s time to dream again. I’m tired of this fearful outlook all the time. I’m tired of the news and it’s obsession with worst-case-scenarios. I’m tired of Albertans taking every piece of information at face value and not questioning the hand guiding it. I don’t like that we’re susceptible to fear and propaganda. I don’t like that we get tunnel vision and forget … Continue reading Dream Again
My Dad
“What do you do for work?”“I’m a pastor”Awkward silence. Covert glances at my tattooed arms. Sometimes judgy eyes. Sometimes surprised. Sometimes nicely surprised. My own late grandmother wouldn’t approve of my tattoos, but then again she didn’t approve of things like playing cards or having fun in general. “Do you know who the Joker represents Corey?” “The devil?”“The devil!!!” I told my dad what she’d said about playing … Continue reading My Dad
