Author: Martin Wiles

As a child and teen, I fought my parents' rules tooth and nail, only realizing later how much obeying them had profited me. Forty-seven years later, I can still see the rules hanging in a frame on my bedroom wall. I can't remember them … Read more

As I grow older, I yearn for the Christmases of my childhood. Being the first grandchild in the family meant a great deal of spoiling. Though I don't remember those years, pictures relay the joy and giving that took place. Prior to my … Read more

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

As I perused each entry, I wondered what I'd read. I was ending my four-year stint as a middle school language arts teacher. The headmaster had selected the final chapel service as the time for me to officially inform the students that I … Read more

Rehearsed materials tend to stay around longer. For the final two weeks of school, I required my middle school language arts students to rehearse what they had learned during the year. The final exam would cover the entire book, so I … Read more

Getting the big head can push us away from God and others. Henry was a close friend of my father's, but they were different. Dad was quiet and reserved; Henry was outgoing and comical. Dad held post-graduate degrees; Henry never made it … Read more

Thousands of people are at the wrong place at the wrong time every day. As I listen to the latest news headlines while eating breakfast, I hear about people who were at the wrong place at the wrong time. Some are seriously injured, while … Read more

What looks good outwardly can occasionally be disappointing. I'm not a fruit inspector — at least not by profession — but I do inspect fruit before I purchase it. When selecting apples and oranges, I look for bruises or soft spots. If … Read more

One was large and the other small, but they both needed to learn a lesson. I once owned an Eskimo Spitz. My family owned a much larger dog that I inherited when they moved away. I lived in the country. There were no leash laws to abide … Read more

He was a godly man, but suffering caused him to question God's purposes. Ted was driving down the road one day, doing what he did best: visiting members of his church. Though he didn't feel quite right that morning, he decided to work … Read more