The company I work for was started by Joe D. some 75 years ago. By the time I was hired, the baton had been passed to Joe’s son, Jim D. Jim was a slight, white-haired man. He was extremely nice, a great storyteller, and a talented networker. Mr. D. had powerful friends all over Texas.Continue reading “Organizational Leadership: Pray for Pastors! Judges 1.”
Author Archives: Steven Wales
You Are Stronger Than You Think You Are. Joshua 16 & 17.
One day in sixth grade, we attended a school-wide assembly. Everyone gathered in the lunch room to watch a display by a local Taekwondo school. I knew that Paul, my buddy across the street, took classes there, so I was on the edge of my seat. For about forty-five minutes, the men punched and kickedContinue reading “You Are Stronger Than You Think You Are. Joshua 16 & 17.”
“Thou Art Old and Stricken in Years” Joshua 13.
My father took aging in stride. He would laugh and say, “I don’t care what color my hair turns, long as it don’t turn loose!” In the end, most of his hair abandoned him. He would laugh about candles on his birthday cake and all the kind and sometimes unkind jokes. “Nothing wrong with aContinue reading ““Thou Art Old and Stricken in Years” Joshua 13.”
Our Bad Habit of Indulgence Before Abstinence: What Do You Do the Day BEFORE? Joshua 3.
We love big days: the championship game, the graduation ceremony, the big vacation, the long-awaited reunion, the move to a new place, Thanksgiving, Christmas Day, and more. Some days are so big, we have to prepare the day before. Halloween became a thing in part because it was the so-called ‘hallowed’ evening before the CatholicContinue reading “Our Bad Habit of Indulgence Before Abstinence: What Do You Do the Day BEFORE? Joshua 3.”
Deathbed Speeches and Uneven Blessings. Deuteronomy 33.
In the spring of 1985, our family of four drove to Baton Rouge to see my grandfather one last time. The man was born in a house in the woods in 1897, and doctors said he had little time left. After nearly a fifty-year career in the world’s largest oil refinery, the emphysema had takenContinue reading “Deathbed Speeches and Uneven Blessings. Deuteronomy 33.”
Memorial Stones. Deuteronomy 27.
Image: Erich Hartmann/Magnum Photos. From https://www.city-journal.org/article/with-meaning-for-all After decades of taking my Bible to church every Sunday, I found myself bringing only my phone. One reason is that I have surrounded myself with chronological Bibles, which are AMAZING to read, but difficult to use during a sermon because chronological Bibles are not printed in a predictableContinue reading “Memorial Stones. Deuteronomy 27.”
Stories We Tell Ourselves. Deuteronomy 26.
We are a storytelling people. Or rather, we are a storytelling species. Every people group on earth tells stories. We tell them to children. We tell them to adults. The only time we stop telling stories is when someone is telling stories to us! Look at the popularity of movies and television. Before TV thereContinue reading “Stories We Tell Ourselves. Deuteronomy 26.”
Paul, the Great Teacher of Grace, Did Not Hesitate to Place Great Demands on Christian Behavior; Good Behavior is Not Legalism. Galatians 5:4.
“I spent my whole education degree studying how Jesus taught. He never asked anyone to memorize anything.” That was my friend James talking. James is focused on grace. He only reads the New Testament. He says things like, “Well, I’m not really an Old Testament guy.” James considers the idea of spiritual disciplines to beContinue reading “Paul, the Great Teacher of Grace, Did Not Hesitate to Place Great Demands on Christian Behavior; Good Behavior is Not Legalism. Galatians 5:4.”
Grace is Amazing, But You are Peculiar. A Rambling Conversation About Grace and Legalism. Deuteronomy 14.
Are you peculiar? You should be. More on that below–first, a word about grace. Grace is incredible. It is similar to forgiveness, but not the same. You might say forgiveness falls under the umbrella of grace. But grace is more than forgiveness. Grace is restoration. God does not simply forgive your sins. He restores yourContinue reading “Grace is Amazing, But You are Peculiar. A Rambling Conversation About Grace and Legalism. Deuteronomy 14.”
Addie Presley Gives Dating Advice. Deuteronomy 7.
“And you know, I just told her, ‘don’t date a boy you would not be willing to marry.’” We were in Portland, Texas at the home of my mother’s aunt and uncle, Addie and Norman. Their daughter Kay, probably a senior in high school at the time, was out on a date when we droveContinue reading “Addie Presley Gives Dating Advice. Deuteronomy 7.”