I love to travel with my husband, whether it is by road, ship, or plane, but for some unknown reason, for the last two years of my mother's life, I developed a fear of flying. The thought of going to the airport and getting on a plane … Read more
Search Results for: "2 Timothy 1:"
I Can't Do This By Myself
As a teenager I gave my life to Christ, not fully understanding what it meant, but I wanted to take a stand for something very important that I believed in, so I took that step. What followed were twists and turns to my mostly … Read more
Remember When?
"Don't you remember?" He didn't. Two years had passed since my son and his family had visited our home. His anger over something that he thought we'd done, but hadn't, boiled. He took his anger out on us by not talking to us or coming to … Read more
Lifeguards
During the past two years, a water exercise class that I enjoyed was shut down due to the pandemic. Recently, because there were too few certified lifeguards available, its reopening was delayed. Lifeguards are essential to the safe and … Read more
Do Not Be Anxious
As our little Shih Tzu puppy and I ventured out onto our patio one fateful morning, a female hawk dove directly towards Bailey. She was only a few inches away from me. I was terrified, so I furiously swung my iPad around (my only weapon), … Read more
The Fear Factor
My most cherished nativity scene (of which I have many!) is one from Malawi that I brought back with me in 1998. This nativity scene almost got me arrested — or worse! Let me tell you the tale. I'd spent over two weeks visiting mission … Read more
What To Do About Mothers
I'm headed up the hill, going home. It is Mother's Day, and a sad-faced man is coming towards me with some flowers. "For your mother?" I say, smiling at the bouquet. He doesn't smile back, but he stops, as though he needs to tell … Read more
A Godly Influence
When I was young, my grandmother lived with us. In our small house, my sister and I shared a bedroom with her. She was a wonderful woman with a godly influence in our lives. One of my fondest memories was hearing her pray every night. The … Read more
Too Much Worrying, Not Enough Believing
Lately, my life has become one big worry. Off work on medical leave, I worry about how I will feed my family and pay the rent and bills. Not knowing what the future will hold is very difficult. I am very much aware that we Christians are … Read more
Servant Leadership
The famous preacher, Charles Price, wrote: We talk a lot about leadership, and rightly so, but our role is never to lead. It is to serve, and God is the one who makes leaders out of servants. If we want to know who our future leaders … Read more
Stirring Up The Gift
I sat in the ladder-back chair, wondering what I should do and feeling a bit useless. The day prior to our move had arrived, but my wife and I were already at our new residence unpacking boxes — at least, she was. With no Internet or … Read more
I Prayed For You
Every day, in numerous instances, be it personally, locally, or globally, there is an overwhelming need for prayer. An uncountable number of people pray for loved ones, for friends, for friends of friends, and for those not even known to … Read more
From Generation To Generation
"Faith of our fathers, living still." – Frederick W. Faber For a number of years now, my wife and I have been driving to different churches where I lead in worship, and we've seen the changes of the seasons as they happen here in southern … Read more
Are You Afraid Of Your Brother?
Have you ever been asked that poignant question? One day on my way home from elementary school, a girl asked me that. Not being one of the more popular kids in town, I immediately became defensive and replied, "Are you afraid of your … Read more
Sweating-Blood Scared
He had proudly denied the existence of God and spewed nothing but hate for Him, but that was before he lay on his death bed. The movie, God's Not Dead, details the story of a battle between a college freshman and an atheist philosophy … Read more
When Words Fail Us
During the last month, we have seen a number of events of terrible carnage in various places: Ankara, Turkey, October 12th – 97 killed, 250 injured; Sinai Peninsula, Egypt, October 31st – a Russian airliner allegedly brought down by … Read more
A Goodly Heritage
There is nothing like moving house to show us that we have a lot of things that we don't really need — and perhaps never did. These were things that we could not live without, so we thought when we bought them, but as we downsize, we … Read more
Serving With Sincerity
I was serving, but deep inside, my motives were tainted. Fresh out of college and pastoring my first church, I was eager to impress … someone … anyone. So began my journey for recognition. In addition to pastoring and teaching … Read more
Giving That Hurts
Finances going south and a pressing question: should I keep giving to God, cut back, or cut it out entirely? I was always taught that we couldn't outgive God, but what about when giving means an unpaid bill, a missed meal, an empty gas … Read more
Disciplined To Discipline
Dad was a master disciplinarian with a large repertoire of manoeuvres. Among them, his favourite: a haircut. I was a baldheaded child, and as I surpass mid-life, I am reliving my childhood. But there was a time when I could grow hair — … Read more
Putting First Things First
Perhaps she wasn't my first case of puppy love, but she's the first I remember fawning over and daydreaming about. Dad was preaching at a small-town church in low-country South Carolina. I was approaching my teen years — not particularly … Read more
Yellow Line
We are blessed to have a walking/biking trail around our lake. The path is paved and has a yellow line down the middle to help walkers and bikers be safe. As I was riding today, there were not many people around, so I took notice of the … Read more
Facing Fear
Fear has a way of taking root in our lives and then remaining there and rearing its ugly head at times and places in our life. Do you know people who, when they go into a coffee shop or restaurant, … Read more
A Grandmother's Gift
My grandmother passed away in September 2008. She was 95 years old and had an incredible life. She lived through both World Wars I and II, she had seven children, and when the youngest two were still at home, she … Read more
It Was Then It Hit Me
We had a little visitor overnight and for the following day. I hadn't given much thought beforehand about my computer and the things that surround it: bookshelves, a printer, a huge stockpile of works that didn't make the cut, and pages … Read more
Victim? Or Victor!
We live in a world where fear seems to be the motivator! Terrorism, bomb threats, super bugs — the list goes on. We are bombarded with fears in the news, the Internet, and the newspapers. No wonder there are days … Read more