Gifts That Last Beyond New Year’s
But now a week after that giddy morning, the gifts are rather scattered. Some still receive attention… Carson wants me to re-read his books each night. Hudson continues to examine his Legos. Everlynn cheerily plays with her kitchen coffee set. Yet other items – so treasured on Christmas morning – are already gathering dust in the corner. A bit of fatherly detective work proves that two certain stockings are already entirely empty. The chocolates and treats have gone the way of all other tasty candies: down the trap and into the stomach they go, never to be heard from again!
More than the most chock-full Christmas tree, the multi-faceted gifts of God wrapped up in Christmas abound. . . .
Share this:
One Must Do in 2019
We’re just a day away from the launch of 2019 and resolution ideas are spreading across social media. With all the self-help lists come charts of what every good person “must do” or “must read” in 2019. We must: eat healthier, exercise more regularly, pay down more debt, save more money, be more productive, and on the list goes…
Yet while all those “must do’s” may be all well and good, there is one action step I believe we all must do as Jesus-followers in 2019….
Share this:
Upside Down Christmas
Christmas is a time of laughter, decorations, family outings, shopping, cooking, reflecting on the birth of Jesus, and so much more! We are supposed to be spreading Christmas cheer and everyone is expected to be happy, right?!
Wrong.
I enjoy the trimmings of Christmastide just as much as the happiest elf. Yet….
Share this:
Discarding Fake Joy
Immediately, I was thankful for the many, many hours of Wee Kids Bible Songs in my parent’s old blue panel van. As the familiar tune for this verse rattled around in my head, I spouted off the exclamatory sentence lickety-split. The teacher happily gave me a golden star for my memory chart and this little line has been forever sealed in my mind. But therein lies the danger. . . .
Share this:
Sears’ Bankruptcy: an Analogy of Church Stagnancy
100 years ago, Sears-Roebuck and Co. was second to none. They defined the term cutting edge by placing their colorful mail-order catalogs in nearly every home across America. Little children giggled over the huge toy section. Moms coveted the latest Kenmore kitchen appliances. Dads stashed away their pennies to buy lifetime-guaranteed Craftsman tools. But now the former industry leader, once perched on the lofty heights of Chicago’s Sears Tower, is seeing all those warm, fuzzy feelings vanish like a bullfrog atop quicksand.
Change is essential to survival.
Making wrong, maladaptive changes = death.
Making right, adaptive changes = health.
Share this:
One Team. One Goal.
With each paddle dipping into the water in perfect rhythm, so God calls us to “contend side-by-side for the faith of the Gospel.” Each of us is wired and gifted in different ways by our amazingly creative God. No two rowers are alike. The same goes for church members in the body of Christ. So we must exercise humility, which is the Spirit-directed source of unity. . . .
