A Thousand Pardons — and One Good Reason

My son, do not let wisdom and understanding out of your sight, preserve sound judgment and discretion — Proverbs 3:21 (NIV) The more observant and the more regular readers among you may have noticed that I have not been posting according to my usual , mid-week schedule. After four-and-a-half years, I have entered a season […]

Re-post: Why You Should Be An Entrepreneur – Part 1

“Find something, found something, or fund something.” – Bob Shank Recent news stories point to improved job prospects and increased pay to go with them. This is encouraging if you have the credentials (read: degree and/or certification) your prospective employer is looking for, but what if you don’t? At a recent convention I attended, I […]

The Price of Dissent – You may be called to pay it

We have the unhappy privilege of living in deeply divided times. Where neighbors used to disagree about sports, politics, and even religion, they maintained friendships and remained neighborly. Now thanks to the accelerant known as the internet, and its igniter, Social Media, differences become grounds for lifetime bans — and worse — for holding an […]

How the Razor Maker Cut Himself Shaving

“Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.11 “Blessed are you when others revile you and persecute you and utter all kinds of evil against you falsely on my account. Rejoice and be glad, for your reward is great in heaven, for so they persecuted the prophets who […]

Hope Is Not a Strategy — But Try Living Without It

“Hope deferred makes the heart sick, but a longing fulfilled is a tree of life.” – Proverbs 13:12 (NIV) I worked with a colleague who took particular delight in reciting the title of this post — the first part, anyway — whenever anyone began a statement with, “I hope…” To be fair to my colleague, […]

The Word for 2019 is Restoration

“I will repay you for the years the locusts have eaten…” Joel 2:25a (NIV) Happy new year, everybody! It’s nice to be back. I hope you all are enjoying Christmastime (if you follow your old Christmas carols, you know there are twelve days of Christmas, so it’s still Christmas even if you have already scuffed […]

Re-post: Comparison Is The Thief of Joy

“But godliness with contentment is great gain” – 1 Timothy 6:6 (NIV) The title of today’s post is a quotation attributed to American president Theodore Roosevelt.  The truth of this statement is so blinding, I am partly tempted to let it stand on its own.  If I did that, though, you might think I was […]

Our Chaos is Why Christmas Exists – Revisited

“For while we were still weak, at the right time Christ died for the ungodly. For one will scarcely die for a righteous person—though perhaps for a good person one would dare even to die — but God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.” – […]

Classic Post Encore: The Unsung Hero of Christmas

Merry Christmas! While we celebrate the incarnation of Christ Jesus, I want to ask you to consider the example of a man who was indispensable to the Christmas story — Joseph the carpenter. Meet Joseph When we first meet Joseph in the Bible, he is defined in terms of his relationships — as the son […]

Classic Post Encore: The Advent Conspiracy – A Cure for Grinches?

Christmas is just around the corner.  Despite the holiday-themed TV ads that began in early November and the radio stations that started playing Christmas music around the same time, it’s possible you may have missed it.  As a friend of mine observed, “Christmas seems to come earlier every year.” If the crass commercialization of the […]