We recently discovered a water link under the foundation of a house that we own. Obviously, the repair cost several thousand dollars. In working with the insurance company, I received a letter from them, with the following sentence in it – Our “Claims team are working together to determine if another party is responsible for the…
I recently attended our Neighborhood Association’s Chili Cook-Off. That is similar to putting your life in the hands of your neighbors. The un-named ingredient that causes a specific Chile to taste so unique could be anything from Armadillo to Rattlesnake. That moist taste could come from a beverage you don’t normally (or ever) drink. But…
The Nutcracker is an 1892 two-act Russian ballet performed by countless ballet companies, primarily during the Christmas season. I remember being exposed to it somewhere along the way, but also remember not being very interested. We’re not sure where he heard about it but my 3 1/2 year-old great-grandson, Crawford, asked if I had a video of…
I had employed all of my well-learned, ministerial detachment along with a determination not to get emotional, but I still lost it during “Amazing Grace.” The funeral soloist, obviously a good friend of the deceased, struggled through the first verse, eventually, chocking up to complete silence. It was at that point that many in the congregation…
I overdid it a couple of weeks ago. Two thousand miles, numerous luncheon, dinner and banquet visits, seven hours of preaching/teaching, four different beds, ten days. I’m too old for this kind of schedule. Twenty years ago, maybe. These days, maybe not. Even as some are reading this on Monday morning, I am 325 miles from home,…
It was a gift book, presented to me by the pastors that I had been teaching in the Rio Grande Valley of Texas. “100 Reasons to Love the Cardinals” was a book about my favorite baseball team, the St Louis Cardinals. I read it on the flight back home. When we landed, I put the…
It happened to me again last week. Have you ever arrived at your destination after your drive, and noticed that you didn’t remember a single thing you saw during your trip? I challenge you, as well as myself, let today be a day of awareness. Consciously pay attention to what is going on around you…
I’m sure of it. My High School Spanish teacher would be so proud of me – if she were still alive. During my time in her class I gave her absolutely no reason for pride. The truth was I just couldn’t memorize a foreign language. I had the same problem a few years later with Greek, then…
If today’s youth think life is a challenge, all I can say is you should have been a Southern Baptist youth in the 1950s, and if that was not challenging enough, go ahead and have a Pastor for a father and a mother who felt called to be a missionary and you became her personal…
On the day of the funeral for Queen Elizabeth II, one of her quotes was shared by the media: “Grief is the price we pay for love.” There is a lot of truth in that statement. For believers, however, grief is not because we’ve lost someone. We know exactly where they are. Grief is because we will, for a…