By Tom Bodett, Small Comforts, 1987, pages 156-159.    Among the thousand and one truisms that were hurled at us as expectant parents was one I especially wanted to believe:  “You are going to learn the most important things from your children.”  It sounded so promising, and when accompanied by a smug veteran-parent grin, it […]
Faded, crumpled, shriveled seeds which now seem dead, will soon, under ‘June’s magic kiss,’ burst forth into beautiful flowers and gardens. In the last line the poet has us imagine how we are able to hold in our hand the seeds that could grow a whole forest– ‘in my hand a forest lies asleep.’  The
3190) A Garden Sleeping in My Hand Read More »
   Pastor H.B. Charles tells the following story about a woman he knew who showed up at church and prayed the same simple prayer.  “O Lord, thank you Jesus,” she prayed week after week.  The kids at church would start laughing every time she opened her mouth because they knew it would be the
3167) Thanking God in Difficult Circumstances Read More »
Fernando Mendoza said after leading his team to the NCAA football championship: “I really can’t thank God enough, and I give Him all the glory because He’s meant so much to myself and to my teammates and my family.”  Mendoza’s gratitude exemplifies the message of today’s meditation. ——————————- Deuteronomy 8:10-18a — When you have eaten
3134) Who Deserves the Credit? Read More »
In John 14:26, Jesus promised that after he went away, he would send the Holy Spirit to “remind you of everything I have said to you.” Â One of the ways the Holy Spirit reminds us of Jesus is by the lives of people who have been inspired by the example of Jesus’ life, as
   Sigird Undset (1882-1949) was a Norwegian novelist who was awarded the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1928.  Her parents were atheists, but still they had her baptized in the Lutheran church because it was customary in that day, whether or not the parents had any faith (sometimes that happens yet today).  She spent
3124) A Thousand Little Gleams Read More »
   In 1963, when he was twenty-one, Stephen Hawking (1942-2018) was diagnosed with ALS and given just two years to live.  It might be that Hawking’s illness helped him become the noted scientist he became.  Before the illness, Hawking had been a lazy student.  He still did well because he was so intelligent, but
3112) Reduced Expectations Read More »
   (…continued) Our two kids were getting ready for bed one night, and my daughter was all excited. She wanted to show me her new underwear. It was not just any old underwear; it was Strawberry Shortcake underwear. Strawberry Shortcake was a line of dolls in the 1980’s that grew into a huge marketing
3080) Two Old Sermon Illustrations (2/2) Read More »
   One day, many years ago, my grade school son said to me firmly, “Dad, I don’t want you talking about me in your sermons anymore.” My daughter quickly agreed with her brother. “Yeah, me neither,” she said, “I have friends in church. Don’t you remember what it was like when you were our
3079) Two Old Sermon Illustrations (1/2) Read More »
Dennis Prager (1948- ) is a wise man. He has written brilliantly on many subjects– religion, relationships, politics, ethics, economics, science, culture, history, and, the key to happiness– which, he says, is gratitude. In this piece, he describes one of the many obstacles to gratitude, which is what he calls the “Missing Tile Syndrome.” Perhaps
3077) Are You Afflicted With ‘Missing Tile Syndrome’? Read More »
