Plugging Into the Power Source The older I get, the more I realize that there is power in community and relationships. We are not meant to do this life on our own. It just doesn’t work very well. Have you noticed that, too? We need each other. But we can't develop...

A Wiggly Worm Gets His Wings I loved teaching little kids -- kindergartners and first graders, which I did for many years. They are inquisitive, funny, and they still love their teacher! (that is always a plus!). This is such an important time when you help them to...

A Light When It's Scary When I was young, one of the things my little sister and I loved to do was play with flashlights. You see, in the “old days” it didn’t take much to be entertained! This was long before computers and the internet. Yes, some of us remember a time...

I Love Spending Time With My Daddy! I love the quiet of the morning. Every morning starts the same. I scan my emails and open my Bible to spend some quiet time in study and prayer. That's one of the blessings of being retired. I can set a regular time each day to...

Obey, What an Ugly Word! Growing up in the “old days,” I loved the simplicity of life.  Everything was carefree. Worries were few (at least in a child’s eyes). Imaginations were high. The only thing my little sister Toni and I had to worry about (yes, that's us in the...

Balance Takes Focus When I first joined the gym several months ago, a trainer met with me to discuss what my fitness goals should be.  At my age, he said, the goals were not about becoming more muscular or even more toned, but simply to focus on improving my...

A Scary Holiday Since it is Halloween, there have been so many commercials, movies, TV shows, haunted houses, and even decorations about scary things lately. In the past, you could always see how fake these things were. But with today’s technology, scary horror movies...

Light Wakes Up the World Good morning! At least it’s morning for me. I love mornings when the sun is waking the world with its light. The dew is still clinging to the blades of grass, and the drops shine like little diamonds in the reflection. It's almost magical. By...

Let It Go, Gracie! We have a two-year-old miniature schnauzer who is as cute as can be! Gracie is quite a character who lets everyone think she’s the boss. She has a big personality and is fearless. The problem is she is still little (only about 12 pounds), so she...

Water Makes Me Thirsty! Hi there, my sweet friend! I hope you're having a refreshing day and staying cool. It's not an easy thing to do here in Texas in the summertime, but we do our best by wearing less clothes (not that many less! Goodness!) and drinking lots of...

How Does Daddy Feel About Me? When I was growing up in Virginia, my father wasn't one to ever share his affections with us. My sister Toni and I often asked our mama (who was very generous with her affection), "Why doesn't Daddy love us?" She would always reply, "Oh,...

A Not-So-Boring Story So many Bible stories are filled with drama and excitement, mystery and danger. Each story has heroes and villains everywhere. If you ever think the Bible is boring, maybe you need to turn off your video games and pick it up again. My favorite...

I Hear Voices... We’ve all seen those images, like the one above, with a mean-looking devil on one shoulder and a cute angel on the other. The image depicts our struggle to make the right choices. What voice do we listen to? It shows Evil and Good fighting for control...

A Memorable Trip and a Memorable Feast! Have you ever had a special meal that was so remarkable that you still remember it years later? I had such a memorable feast back in 1978. Yes, I know you are doing the math -- that was 45 years ago and probably long before you...

God is More Than Anything We Can Ever Dream I love picturing what Heaven will be like and being in the presence of Almighty God. How beautiful and wonderful it will be to dwell there and to be surrounded by all his glory. To be filled to overflowing with his love and...

David, a Slingshot, and a Mighty God Sometimes we face challenges that can be overwhelming or worse  -- terrifying. So, what do we do? We can run and hide. We can ignore the situation and hope it resolves itself. Or, we can do what the shepherd boy David did --...

More Doubt Than Trust Back in 2005, three country songwriters got together to collaborate on another song. The writers, Bret James, Hillary Lindsey, and Gordie Sampson, had collaborated on many songs in the past and had quite a list of hits. But now, they struggled to...

I Just Don't Feel Like It! When I was growing up, I fought with my little sister, Toni, quite a bit. I'd like to blame most of it on Toni as she always pestered me, especially when I had friends over. I was three years older, so I didn't really want her hanging...

Sweet Memories of Mama's Singing My mama was the most loving, sweet woman you’d ever meet. She was kind to everyone she met, and you could see her love for God in every word and action in her life, especially when she would sing. Sadly, in her last four years, she had...

Not With Might, But With a Whisper! I was reading 1 Kings 19:11-13 this morning. What a great but unexpected story! Elijah had fled to Horeb (Mt Sinai) because Jezebel had threatened to kill him. He was hiding in a cave. It was here that God planned to meet Elijah,...

Trust When Things Get Stuck While sitting in a hospital waiting room, I decided to visit the vending machines. I don't usually get snacks from them because they aren't the healthiest choices. Can I trust that they are even fresh? And spending $3 for a bag of chips or...

The Bible -- Help When I Need It Most There is no other book like the Bible! It is full of so many amazing stories. What I love most is how those stories always seem to apply to my life. I can read the same passages at different times and get different messages to...

Sweet Peace, Perfect Peace Don't you just love to watch sleeping babies? They can sleep pretty much anywhere! The softness of their innocent faces just melts my heart. They have no worries and are so trusting of the one who is holding them, especially if it's mommy or...

Little Was Given and Miracles Happened Jesus was a miracle worker. Not only did he heal multitudes, but he also did some pretty astonishing things. He would give what no one expected -- turning water into the best-tasting wine, turning a small boy's basket lunch into...

How to Get Clean: Lather, Rinse, Repeat I haven't looked at my shampoo bottle lately, but in the "old" days, the directions used to say, "lather, rinse, repeat." We don't really need those directions for how to wash our hair, do we? I mean, it's hair. That doesn't...

Bravery is a God Thing My friend Cathy is brave. No, she didn't fight off bank robbers, or skydive over cliffs, or even save a child from drowning. She is brave because her life turned upside down when her husband died recently. How is that brave, you might ask. Well,...

He Does His Best Work When I Am Weak! I've been pondering this morning. I like to ponder. I think God opens my eyes to truths that are hidden in places that might seem insignificant. I'm especially amazed to think about how He can use even a weak vessel like me. I...

Why Can't We Just Be Respectful? Sometimes those of us in the "older" generation complain and bad-mouth the younger generation. I want to say to you all, "I'm sorry." It's not fair to “judge” an entire generation by the ones who don’t do the right things or deserve...

He Knows All About You What we have learned about our all-knowing Father is that He loves us. He knows all about us, including our past and the guilt we carried for so long. He sees the concerns and worries that sometimes overwhelm our hearts in the present. But He...

He knows all about us, including our thoughts, dreams and struggles. And He knows our past, both the good and bad. So now let’s look at what He knows about our lives today – the present. He Knows All of Our Struggles It is amazing that our Father knows how His love...