Grace Givers I’ve been thinking lately about stewardship. That’s not a word we hear very often anymore. It’s one of those words that seems to have fallen out of favor. Most people haven’t noticed. But maybe we should notice. A steward is someone who has the...
Do you remember the ancient fairy tale about Rumpelstiltskin? A king locked the miller’s daughter in a tower, requiring her to spin straw into gold or lose her life. But each night, a strange little man entered her room and, for a price, spun the straw into gold for...
We want love. We need love. More than one thousand song titles contain the word love. We write books about it. Recite poems. We chase it and sing about it and fall for misconceptions of love. And no matter what we do, we can’t get enough. Maybe that’s because we don’t...
Do you remember the song, Jesus Loves the Little Children, written by C. Herbert Woolston? Even if you don’t know all the stanzas, you probably remember the refrain: Jesus loves the little children, All the children of the world. Red and yellow, black and white, All...
Talking about beginnings seems especially appropriate during the month of January. A new month. A new year. And in this case, a new decade. The Bible also starts with “In the beginning” (Genesis 1:1). "In the beginning, God created…." We’ve heard those words so many...
Do you make new year’s resolutions? I used to, but they never lasted more than a few months at the most. A few years ago, I began adopting one word to focus on throughout the year as a substitute for resolutions. One word that would apply to multiple areas of my life....
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,...
This week we commemorated a horrific event in our nation’s history. Social media feeds once again overflowed with posts and photos from September 11, 2001—a day that (please excuse the cliché) will live in infamy. Whether it’s 9/11 or another tragedy, personal or...
It happens all too frequently. I sing praises to God on Sunday morning and wake early on Monday morning beset by worry. The cause might be my growing to-do list. Or circumstances outside my control. It could be due to loss and grief. Actually, the reason is less...
“I know God forgave me. I just can’t forgive myself.” Perhaps you’ve said those words. Maybe you heard someone else say them. But is forgiving yourself a biblical concept? Christians know faith in Christ as Savior and Lord provides freedom from the eternal penalty of...
Intermission or Final Curtain? I enjoy attending live performances. Watching a stage performance gives me a...
Intentional Rest Back in May, I had high hopes and great plans for my summer break. No, not to travel to...
How FAT Are You? Weight has been a sensitive subject for me. I’ve been trying to lose the same twenty pounds...