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My laptop died – and also some companions on my journey with Jesus. The death of a laptop is inconvenient but with a small amount of money and more patience than I possess one can move on without a large sense of loss.  Roy Thompson lost his son over a decade ago.  He said you never get over it.  It is like losing your arm.  You do learn to live your life without the arm, but you never get over it. There have been several who Kay and I have lost in the past but 2011 has been filled with many too many losses.  In January sweet Jason Malouf was taken home and while we celebrated his life the loss to all who knew him has been great. When John Gilman left us in April I lost a...

(I Samuel 30:1-25) Our grandson, Thomas, was five years old.  It was field day for the grade school and kindergarten kids were to participate with grades 1-6.  He was shy and did not like to perform in public.  The teacher was compassionate and wise.  When he refused to take part in the relays out of shyness, she put him in charge of guarding the shoes for the other students in the class.  He was given a special honor when he was too shy to participate?  Not fair! David set out with 600 exhausted men to chase the Amalekites who had looted their camp at Ziklag, taking their wives and children captive.  Already battle-weary, they pursued for 15 miles and 200 of the men were...

A study which has been helpful in relating to those close to me comes from l Corinthians l:l0:  “I appeal to you .  . .  that you may be perfectly united in mind and thought” In this passage the words “perfectly united” are a translation of the word katartizo.  It is used in several ways in the New Testament:  to restore, to perfect, etc.  The one that caught my attention is where it is used “to mend a net”.  Fishermen in Africa spend as much of their time mending nets as they do fishing.  The maintenance of close relationships requires our commitment to mending as well. God’s desire is that in our marriages, our families, our...

Acts 10:1-48 Many have observed that the message of Jesus Christ becomes limited in its appeal because we attach national, religious, theological and institutional cultures to the message of Jesus.  In truth the only thing we can properly communicate across these human barriers is the simple message of Jesus. Acts ten is the account of God dealing with Peter to free him from his cultural bias so he could go beyond his culture and communicate Christ to the Roman soldier, Cornelius.  In the narrative it becomes obvious that religious bias is very difficult to overcome and that the release of long held traditions is a gradual process.  A good question for all serious...