Those Among You Who Fear God

“Friends, Romans, countrymen, lend me your ears.” Without Google, I could not tell you that Shakespeare wrote that in his play, Julius Caesar. I must have read it at some point, probably in high school, and the phrase stuck with me. Why? It uses vocative language to...

It Doesn’t Make Sense…At First

It was a new job outside my career field. That meant learning new acronyms and new regulations. It also meant dealing with a lot more civilians. At first, so much didn’t make sense. By the time I left the assignment, I had a firm grasp of what didn’t make sense at...

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...

Most Likely to Fail

When I was in high school, the end of the year brought the superlatives. Someone made a list with, “Most likely to ____.” Generally, they were positive and highlighted positive future accomplishments. Others were just cruel, “Most likely to fail.” Cruel. During Jesus’...

You Didn’t Say, “Simon Says!”

Do you remember playing that game with neighbors and friends as a kid? The idea was to get someone confused and not really listening, then you would gleefully say, “Jump like a frog!” Then  one of the other kids would – but you didn’t say, “Simon says” so he...

Such a small thing.

A tempest in a teapot. Making a mountain out of a molehill. All hat, no cattle. Never mind, the last doesn’t belong with the first two, but it is so easy to make a big deal about a minor point. In Acts 8:14-17, we read about when the Samaritan Christians received the...

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...

Why Did God Give Us the Book of Acts?

What did Bradbury mean when he wrote Fahrenheit 451? Many students of literature will give many different answers to that question. The easiest way to know what he meant was to ask him, “What did you mean?” But what if Bradbury is no longer available for an...

What do I do now?

 My crew partner admitted to saying, “But I haven’t got to that chapter in the book!” His wife’s water broke, but he hadn’t finished, “What to Expect When You Are Expecting.” The end of the pregnancy snuck upon him. At the crucial moment, he asked the question,...

Denying Jesus

Who stole the cookie from the cookie jar? Not me! That’s a fun song for small children, but when the question is, “Who is a Christian?” how shall we answer? The answer is of paramount personal importance. In John 18, Peter denies Jesus three times (vv. 17, 25, and...

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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