Boot camp

So we do not lose heart. Though our outer self is wasting away, our inner self is being renewed day by day. For this light momentary affliction is preparing for us an eternal weight of glory beyond all comparison, as we look not to the things that are seen but to the things that are unseen. For the ... Continue reading

Unanswered questions

Mac Sledge: I don't know why I wandered out to this part of Texas drunk, and you took me in and pitied me and helped me to straighten out, married me. Why? Why did that happen? Is there a reason that happened? And Sonny's daddy died in the war, my daughter killed in an automobile accident. ... Continue reading

When everything changes

Allison: Everything looks the same here. Nothing's changed, don't you think?Bill: No, Ally, I don't. It all looks different to me. I don't hardly recognize it any more.Stillwater, 2021There are moments in life where if feels like the earth tilts, where something so radical happens that ... Continue reading

What’s your credit score?

Faith was credited to Abraham for righteousness.... He did not waver in unbelief at God's promise but was strengthened in his faith and gave glory to God, because he was fully convinced that what God had promised, he was also able to do. —Romans 4:9b,20 (CSB)I'm old enough to remember taking my ... Continue reading

Remembering is hard

Today was my son's 44th birthday. In all those years we never missed a chance to gather around the table, to eat favorite foods and to celebrate the gift of another year together. But this year was different, because he's gone, forever. No new memories. No new adventures. His voice has been stilled. ... Continue reading

Inside out

The sirens began wailing a little after 8pm, warning the community that conditions were ripe for tornadoes. It was a first for me. It made me a bit nervous. The house was already trembling from high winds, rain was blowing sideways, and it was full dark outside. Then the lights went out.The ... Continue reading

(Mis)understanding God

Peter and the other disciple left immediately for the tomb. They ran, neck and neck. The other disciple got to the tomb first, outrunning Peter. Stooping to look in, he saw the pieces of linen cloth lying there, but he didn't go in. Simon Peter arrived after him, entered the tomb, observed the linen ... Continue reading

A hard teaching

Jesus said to them, “I am the living bread that came down from heaven. Whoever eats this bread will live forever. This bread is my flesh, which I will give for the life of the world." ... "Very truly I tell you, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood, you have no life in you. ... Continue reading