I saw these pearls in a dumpster last winter and the image struck me. I immediately thought of Matthew 7:6: “Don’t give what is holy to dogs or toss your pearls before pigs, or they will trample them with their feet, turn, and tear you to pieces” (HCSB). I realized that so often, we throw…
When we ask God to show us the way out of our dilemmas or despair, do we expect his answers to look a certain way? This past Christmas season, I watched the old film It’s a Wonderful Life for the first time in years. Other than a few iconic clips, I had forgotten most of…
In 2004 I arrived. It was the year I accomplished everything on my wish list. After my high school graduation, I packed up my red Chevy Cavalier and headed to the city. I shook the small-town dust off my Birkenstocks and marched full speed toward my dreams. I pursued my degree with unequivocal focus. I…
I’m crazy about Facebook. Unlike many detractors of our social media culture, I don’t believe Facebook represents the decline of civilization, is the root of all evil, or is the single most likely factor in the destruction of the next generation. I relish the opportunities Facebook gives me to connect with high school classmates, keep…
Jesus answered, “Everyone who drinks this water will be thirsty again, but whoever drinks the water I give them will never thirst. Indeed, the water I give them will become in them a spring of water welling up to eternal life.” (John 4:13–14 NIV) Last night I climbed into bed exhausted—not physically so much as…
I’ve shared in a previous post here that my mother has brain cancer. A day will come when I write about something else, but right now it’s the elephant in my room. God teaches us so many lessons through adversity, doesn’t he? He even promises it: “Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever…