Christmas came fast on the heels of Thanksgiving this year, didn’t it? I don’t know about you but at our house, we barely had time to eat up all the leftovers ‘til it was time to turn the calendar page! I’m not complaining one bit though; I love Christmas! I love reading Advent…
She sat beside his hospital bed, supporting him in his grief. He’d just received news that would rock anyone’s world. It was not likely he would live to see the new year. He blamed himself, and maybe part of his guilt was valid. Some of it wasn’t. Cancer is no respecter of persons. He had…
The jet engine hummed and I shifted in my seat, trying to make myself as small as possible. Why did I always get a middle seat on these trips? Cold air from the vent above me combined with an internal stress I couldn’t shake and my whole body gave way to an involuntary, violent shiver….
It was one of those weeks when more things had gone wrong than right. The deck was stacked against me; no use trying anymore. While wallowing in shame and defeat, my eyes were drawn upward to the right-hand corner of my bedroom, just feet away from where I sat. Earlier this year, Jesus had met…
If you met him on the street or at church, he would appear to be an ordinary young man. Early thirties of average height, with dark hair and handsome features. An observant bystander might identify him as military because of his haircut and a certain bearing but there is no arrogance in his…
On my back porch hangs a planter that just a year ago held a big, beautiful green fern. Today it is just a bunch of brown spikes sticking out of the container. It is dead. Like what I call dead, dead. But my daughter sees one green frond coming from the side of it…
“What are you looking for?” The answer to this question varies a lot depending on where you find yourself in life. If you are on a quest for better health, it could be a specific diet plan your doctor ordered. If your body needs some shoring up, you may be searching for a…
The day was off to a promising start. It was Saturday and I was spending a lazy hour or two reading and meditating on Scripture. That is until I came to an unexpected section of verses that hit on one of the deepest pain points I carry right now. As if a light switch had…
What has happened to my words? Am I walking the wrong road? How can I be sure that this is what God wants me to do? The week had been one that I didn’t care to repeat. The skies of my personal life were mostly cloudy with a chance of thunderstorms and night after night…
The desire to be accepted is as old as time. I once knew a young man who, like many young people, was grappling with personal life struggles, family issues, and relationships among his peers. God seemed as impersonal as the stone statue of the Lincoln Memorial. One day his pastor approached him about yet…