No tie, socks, or handkerchiefs for me this Christmas, but several years ago my kids gave me a beautiful Christmas tie, with a small music box inside. When one pushed the button on the lower part of the tie, it played Jungle Bells. I wore the tie on the following Sunday and preached at the…
As I shared a prayer concern for a former colleague, a verse of Scripture came fresh to me and caused me to do some reflecting. The writer of Hebrews encouraged his readers to “Remember those who led you, who spoke the word of God to you.” (Hebrews 13:7, NASB). This verse became especially appropriate as I…
I recently saw a news story about a North Carolina lab where scientists were trying to develop the perfect Christmas tree. I’m all for them, since I’ve never seen a perfect Christmas tree. My grandmother insisted on making all the decorations new each year for her tree – popcorn strings, blown eggs, dipped in a variety of colors,…
It’s happening again. Neighborhoods with Christmas lights and large inflated balloons of Christmas characters. Stores advertising pre-Christmas sales. Churches having special Christmas music programs. Families planning Christmas travel to be with loved ones far away. Boxes of Christmas decorations coming out of storage. Meredith Wilson wrote it in 1951 and the first to sing it was Bing…
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…