Our youngest granddaughter Lucy is a typical one-year-old, full of joy, energy, and abandon. On a recent visit, Lucy would climb up on the coffee table, nod her head up and down, and take a flying leap into my arms! She never grew tired of doing this. She had a...

If the apostle Paul were an athlete, I think he would be more like Cristiano Ronaldo than Tiger Woods. (Okay, so he wouldn’t be like either of them in a lot of ways, but stick with me for a minute.) Sometimes I think we imagine Paul as the brave evangelist...

"You shall have no other gods before me," so says the first commandment in Exodus 20. God comes first in our lives. Nothing is to replace Him in importance and with our affections. This includes money, health, hobbies, even family. But does that mean my hobbies, my job, my relationships...

But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control. Every year at this time, I look forward to two of my favorite things: vine-ripened tomatoes and freshly-picked peaches (forgive me if I’ve mentioned this before). But nothing is better! Canned, or frozen peaches...

Have you ever played the party game “The Six Degrees of Kevin Bacon?”  It’s a game primarily for movie buffs based on the six degrees of separation (the idea that each person on the planet is just six or fewer social connections away from anyone else).  In the game you...

We recently attended a family reunion in Southeastern Idaho, where about 80 family members were present. There were at least 20 who could not make it. It is fantastic that all of these people are the children, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren of my Mom and Dad. I have five sisters and...

Are church elders perfect? Uh..no. Just ask my wife. She can make you a list. But doesn’t it seem like the standard of elder qualifications in 1 Timothy and Titus is impossibly high? Here is the list from Titus 1:6-9: 6 If any man is above reproach, the husband of...

Praying about big and small things has been an ongoing lesson for me. One of the benefits of prayer is the protection it offers me from making hasty decisions. Many years ago, while we were active duty Navy in Hawaii, I learned once again the necessity of praying about everything....

Sometimes we are at a loss as to what to pray. We may be too emotional, not emotional at all, tired, confused, rebellious, or many other things that bring us to a place where we just don’t have the words. The Lord’s prayer is a prayer for all seasons. Since...

It was almost indistinguishable from a weed yesterday, but it wouldn’t be confused for one today. Weeks have passed since Spring first pulled back the blanket of snow and began to bid the ground to awake. Week by week our family has watched the garden beds as dormant roses, daisies,...

“What’s really important?” That’s an honest question. For us, as believers in Jesus Christ, we should have a quick answer. This should be settled for us because of our understanding of the Scriptures. But, we get distracted. Lately, because of many unforeseen events, I have been distracted but considering this...

I had a little red wagon as a child. My best friend and I made good use of it. We had a portable lemonade stand in it, we took our toys for rides and used the wagon as an advertisement for a dog-walking service. We were quite the little entrepreneurs!...

“Why do we have so many pillows on our bed? What purpose do they serve? I don’t get it.” My dear husband asked me these questions one morning. I simply replied, “they are decorative, essential, and strategically placed, honey.” This got me thinking about how God gave explicit directions for...

Have you seen God lately? It’s not uncommon to hear people say that they’ve seen God. They usually claim this by some spiritual experience, near-death experience, or vision of some sort. The internet is full of people who say, “I saw God.” Even George Strait has a song called, “I...

In preparing for our latest Northwest Institute of Christian Studies class that covers the Reformation among other things, it has been a treat to read some of what our spiritual heroes in the past have written. Imperfect as they all were, it is still a joy to read words which...

Who knew there were so many Old Testament scholars? I was reading an article about political policy and scrolled through the first few comments when I stumbled into a thread of sage experts in Mosaic law. You see, one individual suggested that the Christian worldview might have some perspective on...

“Masters, grant to your slaves justice and fairness, knowing that you too have a Master in heaven” (Colossians 4:1). Paul is speaking of the treatment of slaves to the Roman-era believers in Colossae. Centuries after the Law was given, slavery was still present. In fact, it was worse than ever....

The throne room scenes in “The Wizard of Oz” are probably my favorite. After many twists and turns on “The Yellow Brick Road,” Dorothy, the Scarecrow, the Tin Man, and the Cowardly Lion finally arrive in the Emerald City. After much ado, they are granted an audience with the Wizard...

“Not a good idea!” Our four-year-old granddaughter hollered breathlessly as her grandpa Ben was spinning her around at top speed on a piece of playground equipment. Her hair was standing straight out behind her, and she was hanging on for dear life! She was warning her grandpa to stop. The...

In Europe, tradition holds that every realm is comprised of three estates: the clergy, the nobility, and the commoners. Power typically was held by some combination of the clergy and the nobility, and the commoners often found themselves in the position of having little voice in addressing their concerns or...