A Dust Cloud, a Dark Bay, and a Prayer
Sometimes God answers prayers in ways that feel both overwhelming and unfinished. A door opens, a reunion happens, a glimpse of healing arrives — and still, questions linger. How long will this last? What happens next? But maybe the gift isn’t in how long it stays. Maybe it’s in knowing he sees, he hears and he is still gently writing your story — even in the dust clouds and fragile reunions.
You Were Never Meant to Figure This Out Alone
You don’t have to imagine what it would be like to walk beside Jesus — he hasn’t left you alone. The same wisdom, comfort and steady presence the disciples knew is given to you now through the Spirit. Not distant, not silent, but near. When life feels confusing or heavy, you are not left to figure it out. The Counselor is already beside you, ready to lead you home.
How is Forgiveness Even Possible?
Forgiveness doesn’t begin when the pain fades; it begins when we choose, however trembling, to place our hurt in God’s hands. You may not feel ready, and that’s honest. But forgiveness isn’t powered by your feelings — it’s carried by Christ’s. You bring your willingness; he supplies what’s missing. And slowly, through repeated surrender, what once felt impossible becomes the very place peace begins.
The Golden Thread: Church Unity Through the Eyes of a Birder
A flock of birds moves as one — not because one leads, but because each is held by something unseen. The church is like that. Beneath the ordinary faces on a Sunday morning runs a quiet, binding unity in Christ. A golden thread connects us — across rooms, cities and centuries — into something far more beautiful than we can see at a glance.
The Measure Of Our Walk With God Isn’t In Results, But Faithfulness
After thousands of sermons and columns, I can count the ones I truly like on my fingers. Most weeks feel like falling short. Yet the calling never left. Over time I’ve realized something simple: God doesn’t measure our lives by applause or outcomes. He asks for faithfulness. We plant the flowers, even if they’re trampled. The results were never ours to control anyway.
The Beauty — and Power — of Restorying Your Story
Some stories feel beyond redemption. Trauma doesn’t tie itself up neatly, and healing rarely moves in straight lines. But over time, God begins to weave threads we couldn’t see at first — using even the gifts shaped in pain as instruments of restoration. He doesn’t erase our story; he reframes it. And as he heals us in ways fitted to our souls, we become people who help others find hope in theirs.
The Art of an Apology
In a busy home, apologies come often — and not all of them land well. A rushed or defensive “sorry” can leave real harm untouched. A true apology takes courage: naming what we did, honoring the other person’s pain, committing to change and asking for forgiveness. When we do that kind of work, humility opens the door to healing — and relationships begin to breathe again.
If It’s Broke, Keep Breaking It
Addiction didn’t arrive as a choice — it arrived as a lie about what could make me whole. Crystal meth promised relief, creativity, life. Instead, it hollowed everything out. I built a world around pain and called it survival. Looking back, I see a pattern familiar to all of us: broken people making broken choices, trying to fill a void that only grows. Darkness multiplies when we keep breaking what’s already broken.
The Grace of Cold Water: Finding Comfort in Discomfort
Cold water has a strange kind of grace: it teaches us to meet discomfort without panic, to breathe instead of brace. Small, chosen stress can form resilience — body and soul — preparing us for heavier suffering we don’t get to schedule. In the chill, we practice surrender, learning that God is present not only in warmth and ease, but in the hard moments that deepen endurance and quietly grow fruit.
The Power Of Sign Language Bibles
For millions of Deaf readers, Scripture has often arrived as a closed door — text-heavy, audio-dependent, preached but not truly heard. That’s why sign language Bible translation matters: it meets people in their heart language, through expression and story. The Deaf Bible app gathers signed Scripture in one place, turning verses into living communication. For many, it’s not a tech novelty — it’s the first time the Word feels personal, clear and fully theirs.
Rooted in a Restless Age
Outrage feels like the air we breathe now — at meetings, online, even in church. We brace for defensiveness, settle into cynicism, and call it normal. But Paul says this restlessness has a root: life “in the flesh,” where neglect grows weeds fast. The Spirit offers another kind of cultivation — belonging, surrender and a steady step-by-step walk that forms real fruit in us.
Suffering and the Providence of God
Providence isn’t a theory meant for armchairs — it’s the difference between living landlocked in fear and living anchored in hope.
I Know What I Need to Be Doing
Every January, I come back to three risky prayers — because they invite Jesus to disagree with my plans. When I finally asked with real openness, one word surfaced: with. Then a face: my 89-year-old dad. The invitation was simple — Friday lunch — and it reshaped my year. The third answer surprised me too: silence, walking my neighborhood with God.
Rethinking New Year’s Resolutions
Bob Stephens’ elliptical has become a coat rack, which is honestly how most resolutions die — quietly, under the weight of real life. But he’s back at it, not to earn God’s favor, but to steward what he’s been given. That’s the shift. The new year invites a reset, but the gospel reminds us we’re already loved. So set goals, yes — measurable, humble ones — and let them serve your people, not your ego.
The Both-And of Self-Kindness: Why Loving Yourself Isn’t Selfish
Self-kindness, for A.C., began not as a trendy practice but as a terrifying assignment: speak to herself with the same gentleness she’d learned to offer everyone else. Slowly, Scripture and therapy together reframed kindness as part of bearing God’s image, not betraying it. Naming old, shaming messages and letting divine compassion seep into those bruised places became less self-indulgence and more quiet agreement with how God already loves her.
Your Many Siblings: God Could Not Be Satisfied with One Child
God wanted more than one Son. The Word became flesh so that the only begotten might become the first among many. Love moved him — not to multiply servants, but to multiply sons. The cross was his way to family, his means to glory. Christ our Brother, God our Father, and we, his children — justified, glorified, gathered home together.
Short-Term Missions: Their Value When Done Right
Short-term missions can be a holy gift — or a well-funded vacation with a paintbrush. What makes the difference is whether we actually love people enough to serve them wisely. Done right, we go invited, trained and humble, strengthening the local church instead of starring in our own story. Mercy matters. But so does meaning. We bring help — and we bring Jesus.
A Profound Forgiveness
Amanda Knox spent years wrongly imprisoned in Italy, vilified by the press, and haunted by the loss of her friend. Yet in 2022, she sat across from the prosecutor she once blamed and said, “I do not think you are an evil person.” Forgiveness didn’t erase her anger or pain, but it reframed her story. Grace became possible where bitterness had every right to stay.
The Speed of Soul
Harried sneaks in quiet — too many commitments, too little peace. It leaves us scattered, brittle, gasping for margin. But calm doesn’t just happen; it must be cultivated. That old man’s words still echo: find your center. Love deeply. Live quietly. Mind your own affairs. Work with your hands. An unhurried soul isn’t stumbled upon; it’s forged — slowly, intentionally, like wisdom cut through stone.
A Different Saint Film: ‘Triumph Of The Heart’
Most faith-based films avoid dwelling too long on real suffering, but “Triumph of the Heart” refuses to look away. The story of St. Maximilian Kolbe’s martyrdom under the Nazis immerses viewers in hunger, brutality and despair — yet also reveals compassion and dignity stronger than oppression. Its beauty lies in showing that a Christian’s hope can outlast the world’s darkest will.