The other leaders were jealous. The foreigner, the boss’s handpicked favorite, continued to outclass, outperform them all. His enemies murmured and looked for ways to spread gossip about him to...
Somewhere around seventh grade, my boy scout troop was gearing up for the annual pinewood derby race: a contest where scouts whittle down a small rectangular block of pine into polished cars that...
“So whatever you eat or drink, whatever you do, do everything for the glory of God." 1 Cor. 10:31 ...
"Dad, can you help me with my English homework?" ...
“Did God really say . . . ?” “Who am I?” and “Who do you say that I am?” ...
In his book, Achieving Personal Greatness, author Tim Lavender describes his childhood walk to school past a ferocious dog. Each morning, Tim steeled himself to outrun the charging beast. This...
An old man came to the house after my grandfather’s funeral. While others brought casseroles and tidbits of spoken comfort dredged from their personal faith, the old man found a chair and sat...
John the Baptist went into all the region around the Jordan, proclaiming a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins. . . . John said to the crowds that came out to...
So . . . every person whom the Lord has given skill and ability to know how to carry out all the work of constructing the sanctuary are to do the work just...
The night began with a black-tie event at the convention center, with the emcee calling my wife and me onstage to a standing ovation. Heady stuff to see a crowd laud one's work—in...
A few years ago during the Olympics, a TV report updated the lives of gold medal winners from years past. Story after story, after the shining moments of national anthems and glory, the...
When I entered the room, my father glanced up and then maneuvered his wheelchair to face the window. I sighed and settled into a chair. Seventy miles I drove to be with him...
The musical group U2’s Bono quotes Eugene Peterson from the stage. Readers of the best selling Bible, The Message, find themselves holding...
Smell of hay, a newborn's cry, makeshift crib, anxious first-time parents away from family and friends—uncertain and confusing times, politically and personally. These were the ordinary...
I am driving through the rolling hills of New Jersey on a day in early fall, trying to convince a character named Megan to move to Hackettstown, New Jersey, where there is a...
John, the backdoor glass is broken. I'll explain when we get home. ...
And now, brothers, we want you to know about the grace that God has given the Macedonian churches. Out of the most severe trial, their overflowing joy and their extreme poverty welled up...
On Easter Sunday in 1970, John Michael Tebelak went to church. He left depressed and later said he felt the dry liturgy did more to keep the stone rolled in front of the...
Sitting in traffic one hot afternoon, I studied the SUV in front of me sporting prestigious decals from private schools, exclusive camps, and elegant country clubs. I started thinking about our...
Honor your father and your mother, so that your days may be long in the land that the LORD your God is giving you. Exodus 20:12 My mother-in-law, Genevieve, grew weaker by the...
