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Journaling PAIN
This blog post is unusual. In it, you will find three of my journal writings from years past. Unlike typical unedited journal entries, I have revised these. I didn’t want you swimming around trying to make sense of my thoughts. The entries focus on physical suffering. It’s not my intention, however, to dismiss the many other ways in which we may suffer. Suffering of any kind has many similarities. Rather, pain is just where I tend to live. For those who suffer physically, I hope you will find some comfort, strength, encouragement, and even a chuckle in what you read. For everyone else, may you continue to grow in your…
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Do Everything Without Grumbling So Your Light Will Shine
Above our kitchen sink my mother taped a card upon which was written a command for her children to see, memorize, and obey. Do everything without grumbling or arguing, so that you may be blameless and pure, children of God without blemish though you live in a crooked and perverse society, in which you shine as lights in the world. Phil 2:14–15 This was her frustrated and desperate response to my (and my siblings’) constant complaining about the household chore of dishwashing. The fact that we lived in a bamboo-walled and grass-roofed home in a village in Papua New Guinea might have increased the murmuring. Not that we disliked our situation,…
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What Are You Valuing?
Curious about what’s in the photo above? Give it your best guess. Okay, give up? They are cow gallstones! Sorry if you’re eating while reading this. Much more colorful than human gallstones, and a lot more valuable, these little gems can sell from $1,700 to $4,000 an ounce wholesale. China and Japan have long since used cow and ox gallstones to treat various diseases, including high fever, convulsion, stroke, obesity, and hypertension. Though this prized, hardened bile isn’t easy to come by. They’re found in the cow’s salvage when processed, and only about 1 out of every 500 to 1,000 cows have gallstones. It appears the cows fare better than…
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Choosing Joy!
“Rejoice in the Lord always. Again I say, rejoice!” Philippians 4:4 Paul wrote that verse while in prison, not while he was taking a beach vacation. Instead of being wrapped in a beach towel, he was wrapped in chains. Instead of viewing pretty sunsets, Paul faced the possible sunset of his life by execution—Nero style. In four brief chapters, Paul attempts to convince us that no matter our circumstances, believers can have joy. That we don’t have to live anxious lives. Instead, we can experience abundant peace in our hearts and minds. But how can we arrive at joyful, anxiety-free lives, and incomprehensible peace? What’s the recipe? Paul provides the…
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Who Are You Trusting?
When our world seems chaotic, when we’re facing boatloads of trouble, when nothing appears to make sense anymore, there’s no better time to quiet our minds. When we quiet our anxious thoughts, the Holy Spirit says, “I have words I want to share with you.” Sometimes he speaks between the silenced spaces of our busy minds. Other times through encouraging passages from God’s Word. I wrote this short meditation on Hebrews 12:1-3 when my mind, body, and heart felt tired and unsettled. May it encourage you when weary to collapse into the God of comfort and peace. Let his holy Word refresh your thoughts as you meditate on his written…
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My Father’s Heart
At age 76, my dad was enjoying a set of tennis doubles when he felt a sudden pain in his jaw. He tried to dismiss it as pain from some recent dental work. However, one of the other players, a doctor, convinced him to go to the hospital, believing it was the start of a heart attack. Three days later, my dad underwent seven bypasses! His own father, died at age sixty from the same hereditary heart disease. Therefore, my dad’s doctor recommended that all of his kids get tested every ten years by having a calcium heart scan. My first heart scan test showed a perfect score. Ten years…
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The Bible
Have you determined to include in this New Year a better understanding of God’s Word? Can you explain the purpose of the Bible? Can you defend its accuracy and historicity to those who may question it? I couldn’t for most of my Christian life. In this blog, you will read some facts you’ve likely never heard before. I hope it strengthens your ability to trust in and defend the Bible. Growing a deeper love and appreciation for the most sold, most read book of all time! The Bible exists so that all might acknowledge the sovereign Lord God, through Christ Jesus, and come to dwell now in part, and later…
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Is America a Post-Christian Nation?
Several months ago, I read the statement, “America isn’t a post-Christian nation—yet.” Would you agree with that statement? According to Pew Research, Christians continue to make up a majority of the U.S. populace, but their share of the adult population was 12 points lower in 2021 than in 2011. Self-identified Christians of all varieties (including Protestants, Catholics, members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, and Orthodox Christians) still make up 63% of the adult population. But wait a minute! Before we think that we’re still a Christian nation or ever were, shouldn’t we establish some kind of definition of the term Christian? Did you read the varieties of…
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The Boss of Busyness
Carpool lines. Community group. Sports practice. Service Projects. Work deadlines. Worship service. As much as we long for a break from our endless to dos, there’s something about busyness we often crave. Why else do we check our phone too many times on a day off? Our use our precious little free time to scroll through social media? Sometimes we’re just curious. Sometimes we need a mindless way to unwind. But sometimes we simply don’t know what to do with the stillness. Most days I wait until the late hours of the evening to pause. In one of these rare, quite moments I began thinking about the busyness. Conviction quickly…
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Predator Thoughts
But suddenly there appear these huge shark-like thoughts that have been inserted by the enemy of my soul. Thoughts of shame and worthlessness, reminders of failures and past sins.
