You may be reading this on Thanksgiving, but complaints about Christmas already abound. Have you heard them? Christmas has become too commercial! Actually, this one isn’t really new. Remember the 1947 classic movie, Miracle on 34th Street? More than 70 years ago,...
Regardless of your political persuasion or opinion of the author of a book by a similar title, I’ve learned “it takes a village” for adults, too. It’s been more than a year since I experienced the most significant loss of my life. The loss of my better half left me...
Some say a weed is just a plant flourishing where you don’t want it to grow. The plant I gazed at certainly fit that description. Its tender green leaves and slim stem contrasted with the smoky-blue Florida sky as it grew in the gutter on my roof. Definitely a place I...
Autumn is here. Splashes of red, orange, and gold punctuating a green canopy. Falling leaves blanketing lawns. A nip in the air and hot apple cider on the stove (or in the microwave!). Sweaters and scarves become go-to accessories. Or not. Here in south Florida, the...
Ghosts and witches. Jack-o’-lanterns and black cats. Scary masks and things that go bump in the night. Typical frightening Halloween fare. But the day is not called Scary-ween. So what is the “hallow” in Halloween? Hallow is not a frequently used word these days. When...
It seems children’s entertainment is becoming darker. Movies and video games seem to be pushing children to embrace adult situations. And it's all in the name of being resourceful—of not needing adults (especially parents) to help them solve their problems. On the...
It was just a tiny spot recognized by the scan—a little more than a centimeter. But as soon as it was identified, the medical community sprang into action. More scans, tests, chemotherapy, radiation. Months of treatment based on the knowledge that this one spot was...
Pocketing and cookie jarring. To paraphrase a line from The Princess Bride, “I do not think it means what you think it means.” One thing is for sure: neither phrase means what I thought they meant! Both terms are now used to describe dating trends. Pocketing occurs...
I’m confused. I understand atheists who say there is no God. I don’t agree with them. But if they choose to hold a position contrary to what the Bible says, they’re free to do so. I understand Muslims who say Allah is god and Mohammed is his prophet. Again, I don’t...
Bible study can be encouraging…until we begin to put the people of the Bible on a pedestal. It’s so easy to think of them as almost mythical individuals. Abraham, Moses, Joshua, David, Solomon, Peter, Paul—we read their accounts and imagine them to be...
Power of the Tongue “O, Lord: Help my words be gracious and tender today, For tomorrow I may have to eat them!”...
Trying Harder to Believe a Lie Are you concerned that you’re not “doing” the Christian life right? Perhaps...
Selective Vision and Selective Listening As a writer and freelance editor, I’ve seen first-hand how easy it is...