I’ve spent a lot of time pondering and praying about the call to “love like Jesus.” There’s no denying Jesus loved big. He was so compassionate. He didn’t shy away from spending time with and meeting the needs of the lowliest of the low in the cities and towns He…
HYMN DAY! “Let Your Heart Be Broken” is set to the tune of “Like a River Glorious.” I love these words—what a bold challenge to us as believers to set an example of Jesus! 1 Let your heart be broken for a world in need: Feed the mouths that hunger,…
When I think of people who have inspired me in my Christian walk, I think of my mom and dad, a couple of former ministers, several people I’ve met either in the work place or in church—people who showed an example of faithfulness despite the trials and hardships of life.…
Whenever I hear, “My body, my choice,” I cringe. This isn’t because of politics, though. It’s because it’s so selfish. It blatantly ignores the truth that each of us are created in His image and are called to seek and follow Him instead of living only for self. His hands…
There’s a common mindset that if the going gets hard, abandon it, because you deserve happiness. On the surface it sounds pretty good, but is it really? I would imagine an athlete would tell you the training that goes into being good enough to compete in the Olympics is hard,…
When I was a kid, my parents had a rule for my brother and me: no matter what other children were doing, we were expected to behave ourselves. Of course, they’d prefaced this with instruction on what they considered appropriate behavior, so there wasn’t any excuse when we chose unwisely.…
“Come, All Christians, Be Committed,” by Eva B. Loyd is a call to both commitment and action. Come, all Christians, be committed To the service of the lord; Make your lives for him more fitted, Tune your hearts with one accord. Come into His courts with gladness, Each his sacred…
A little boy, who was known for being ornerier than most, dashed to his parents’ waiting car after school and flopped into the backseat with a huge grin. He cheerfully announced, “I had a good day today! I only got three time-outs instead of five!” Despite our best efforts, we…
We live in the information age. We are inundated with information—some of it accurate and helpful; some of it actually harmful misinformation. I used to tell my fifth graders, what is popular (socially accepted/lauded) is not always right, and what is right is not always popular. It’s been a long…
A couple Sundays ago, my class discussed how we can stand for right in a world that celebrates wrong. One of the younger members said, “Find friends who believe like you do.” Sound advice. It’s so much easier to be pulled down than it is to pull someone up. If…
