Jesus Wept

Sometimes the significant figures of history seem distant with little humanity. George Washington is a monolith on the National Mall. Abraham Lincoln sits in a big chair, staring off into the distance. They existed, but don’t feel real. But Grandpa, I could relate to...

On the Outside Looking In

Not everyone gets included. Someone has to be picked last for kickball in PE class. Some kids don’t have parents to provide for them, much less buy them gifts for birthdays or Christmas. The weird guy at work is isolated because he is the topic of conversation, not a...

A Prayer

Holy God, You Who are Creator of All That Is, You Who are Love’s source and example, You Who are the great I am, You who are the eternal comforter, and You who are Redeemer of mankind through the ages – past, present, and future – please hear this prayer. You are...

My Babies’ First Words Were Blub and Gulg

New parents place a lot of value on their baby’s first words. Will the baby say, “mahmah” first, or “dhuhdhuh”? Either mom or dad will get the bragging rights. But what if those first words are, “dohg-ee”!? Jesus’ first words as a human are not...

I Am a Vegan, Except When I Eat Steak

That is a silly statement isn’t it? The vegans I know tend to be committed to the lifestyle. No one can honestly call themselves “vegan” and plan to eat steak every Thursday. In the same way, it makes no sense to say, “I am a Christian, except when I am a...

How Could He Do That?

Sometimes this is a negative question, but sometimes a positive one. For example, Thom’s cancer came back with a vengeance. The morphine was no longer working, and he was in horrible pain. Then Violet walks in, and for the duration of his grandchild’s visit, he smiles...

Right Hace! Forward Harch!

I remember learning to march. The drill instructor was very patient and repeated a command as many times as necessary for all of us to get it. We carried refreshments around with us on our belts. We smiled a lot. It was spring. It was beautiful. Or maybe not… The...

Double-take

Sometimes we have to do a double-take. We miss it at first glance, and we have to look at it again to really see it. In John 17, we read Jesus’ prayer to the Father. In this single chapter, Jesus uses the word “world” 18 times! How important was the world to Jesus if...

Courage

People jump out of perfectly good airplanes. That may be a display of courage, but an equally strong argument could be made for recklessness. What is your view of skydiving? It certainly takes trust in the equipment, the packing, the reserve chute. It takes courage to...

Down, but Not Out

We lose our job, or we are taken to court, or our character is assassinated by those we trusted most – there are so many ways others might make us feel down. When others hurt us, it is easy to feel down, but it is entirely our choice to feel out. In Acts 8:1-5, we see...

New Testament

God Has a Better Plan

God Has a Better Plan

Two thousand years ago, Elizabeth wanted children. In her culture, children were her priority. She didn’t have any, therefore others looked down on her. Her society wrote her off as too old to be a successful Jewish woman. She was too old to have children. She was...

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Greek Yogurt Is Terrible

Greek Yogurt Is Terrible

Johnny stood, mouth open in disgust. “It gets stuck between your teeth, is too tough to chew, and tastes like day-old Dr. Pepper. Greek yogurt is yucky!” He wrinkled his nose even thinking about it. Jen paused her spoon an inch from her open mouth. “Have you ever...

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Come and See!

Come and See!

Nurses just know. They’ve been there, done that. They say, “Just slap a bandaid on it and stop complainin’!” But that same gruff nurse who blows off our ouches and owies as an annoyance will soften like butter in the warm, Texas sun when confronted with a patient who...

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Old Testament

Change Is Tough

Change Is Tough

The Air Force provides a lot of training, very little of it on a volunteer basis. One of the trainings I took was in “Change Management.” It may have had a different, more military sounding name, something like “Non-linear Progression of Leadership Requirements” but I...

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The A-Team

The A-Team

When the Air Force stationed my dad overseas, the only real disadvantage of living “on the economy” was a lack of US TV programs. If you lived close enough to base, you could watch the Armed Forces Network, but we lived too far away. Somehow, one of the American...

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