Image: Paratroopers from the 11th Airborne division training at Fort Campbell, Kentucky in the early 1950s. My father could be in this picture. From https://www.reddit.com/r/pics/comments/18zacz8/11th_airborne_paratroopers_jump_training_in_fort/ “Where do you think you’re going, Wales!” The sergeant screamed at my dad, a young recruit in basic training. The men were inside a gas chamber. The rule was, theContinue reading “God Sends His Recruits to Boot Camp. Exodus 14:11.”
Category Archives: Adversity
Praise: Talk to God About His Greatness, Part 2 of 2. Job 19:25-27.
Suffering is a universal truth of life. Everyone suffers, whether rich or poor, powerful or weak. As Jesus said, “He … causes the rain to fall on the just and the unjust” Matthew 5:45. Suffering does not become easier as you get older. When it hurts, it hurts! But handling suffering becomes easier—because with experience,Continue reading “Praise: Talk to God About His Greatness, Part 2 of 2. Job 19:25-27.”
Words Spoken for a Word-Lover: RICK BUSH AND THE HOUND OF HEAVEN. Psalm 139:7-8.
Pictured: Rick Bush in 2011, holding his newborn twin boys. In June of 2001, Houston was hit by Tropical Storm Allison. Everything was flooding and destruction. No one could work. I had not seen my friend Rick in a while, so I called him and arranged lunch. Rick and I had met in the fallContinue reading “Words Spoken for a Word-Lover: RICK BUSH AND THE HOUND OF HEAVEN. Psalm 139:7-8.”
‘Thou Shalt Decree a Thing and It Shall Be Established.’ If You Can Name it, You Can Claim it!
Image generated by A.I. Bob turned on the television at the end of a long day. He walked across the room and fell into a recliner, exhausted. His wife Julie was seated next to him, using her phone to play an online game of Scrabble with one of her girlfriends. As the television came on,Continue reading “‘Thou Shalt Decree a Thing and It Shall Be Established.’ If You Can Name it, You Can Claim it!”
Do You Complain or Do You Lament? Lamentations 1:1.
Do you know the difference between a lament and a complaint? Modern English dictionaries may show little distinction, but Old Testament scholars argue a Biblical lament is more than just a complaint. “A complaint is an accusation against God that maligns His character, but a lament is an appeal to God based on confidence in HisContinue reading “Do You Complain or Do You Lament? Lamentations 1:1.”
Why Do We Suffer? Is There A Purpose to Suffering?
Picture of a “terra cotta wall sconce,” that is–an earthen vessel or a clay pot for holding (and releasing) light. I can think of four reasons for suffering: 1. We live in a broken world. Every day we endure hassles caused by the Fall: illness, parasites, hurricanes, etc. 2. We have an enemy—we are attackedContinue reading “Why Do We Suffer? Is There A Purpose to Suffering?”
Do you get what you deserve? Are your good deeds always rewarded? 1 Peter 4:12-13
Are your good deeds always rewarded? Mine are not. Sometimes I work hard and still suffer. Does that happen to you? Sure it does. But the opposite happens too, doesn’t it? Sometimes we sin and fail but God is merciful and He gives us success anyway, right? If we could see the story arc ofContinue reading “Do you get what you deserve? Are your good deeds always rewarded? 1 Peter 4:12-13”
HOPE FOR THOSE WHO HAVE NO “QUALITY OF LIFE.” Ephesians 3:10.
Joni asks hard questions—What about the quadriplegic on a ventilator? What about that person who can communicate only by blinking? How do you respond to an Alzheimer’s diagnosis? What hope is left when disease has spread and pain is increasing? Why hang on? What about those who live their entire lives trapped inside bodies andContinue reading “HOPE FOR THOSE WHO HAVE NO “QUALITY OF LIFE.” Ephesians 3:10.”
WE CONQUER OVERWHELMINGLY. Romans 8:37.
Have you ever seen a sports match that was one-sided—a BLOWOUT? Recently, the Memphis Grizzlies basketball team defeated the Oklahoma City Thunder 152-79. In 2007, the Texas Rangers defeated the Baltimore Orioles 30-3. In 1940, the Chicago Bears beat the Redskins 73-0. In 2000, Tiger Woods won the US Open by 15 strokes. And whoContinue reading “WE CONQUER OVERWHELMINGLY. Romans 8:37.”
Daydreaming About Romans 8:28.
As a little boy I was sensitive, artistic, bored, and bullied. I was in trouble ALL the time. But I had amazing parents—and a wild imagination. And there was this one crazy daydream that stuck with me, a theme I came back to constantly: I imagined that I was the center of my own “SECRETContinue reading “Daydreaming About Romans 8:28.”
Household Words: 