Character
When Success Runs Amok
My senior year in high school I had the privilege of being the featured speaker at the Junior-Senior Banquet. I was certainly not the first choice for the role, and I was absolutely not the best choice. At the time, I had no intention of speaking publicly for a living. However, I accepted the challenge…
Read More4 Principles of Good Citizenship
Election season increasingly brings an attitude of bitterness and division to a people barely clinging to the concept of unity. This rancor has seeped into the souls of Christians as well, creating a toxic atmosphere where some grasp at any and every cause to support and politicize as a desperate attempt to validate their own…
Read More7 Lessons Every Preacher Must Learn
From the moment preachers graduate from school and begin a work, they typically become the focal point of learning in the local congregation. The nature of the work necessarily includes the built-in expectation of advanced knowledge and the ability to communicate. The man of God must prove himself a man of character, ready to face…
Read MoreWhat Did You Expect?
Author and poet Maya Angelou famously said, “When someone shows you who they are, believe them the first time.” While this may seem harsh on the outset, so long as we allow people the opportunity to grow, change, and improve, the truth underlying this quotation has biblical roots. In fact, our problems in relationships, on…
Read MoreThe Path to Maturity
Rebellion against authority, selfish demands, and violence dominate the headlines today, accompanied by various justifications rooted in ignorance of history and its value, in newly concocted microaggressions visible only to the easily offended, and identity politics so removed from reality that meaning ceases to exist. Sadly, the cacophony emanating from riots not recognized as riots,…
Read MoreTraining Camp
Training camp does not evoke images of ease and comfort for anyone who has taken part in one. Paul “Bear” Bryant’s legendary training camp in Junction, Texas after he took the reins as head coach of Texas A&M included all-day workouts in 100 degree heat—without offering the now customary water breaks—followed by team meetings in…
Read MoreSomething Worse Than Isolation
Isolation has a rich history as a theme often explored by authors, directors, and teachers. In elementary school I remember reading Island of the Blue Dolphins by Scott O’Dell about a young girl stranded alone for years on an island off the California coast. A few years later I read Robinson Crusoe, the classic work…
Read MoreStriving, Quarreling, and General Disagreeableness
In only six months, the year 2020 eclipsed the chaos of any other year in recent memory. It opened with the impeachment of a president and quickly pivoted to a fast and furious primary cycle, only to find COVID-19 furiously stalking the world and, through shelter-in-place orders, turning a robust economy into an economic catastrophe.…
Read MoreA Prudent Wife
The book of Proverbs addresses some of the most practical aspects of life. From handling finances to dealing with people, its inspired wisdom offers meaningful insight to all willing to listen. However, one of the interesting observations available in a book largely written by a man whose home life left much to be desired pertains…
Read MoreInevitable Conflict?
The algorithms of social media encourage polarization. However, I do not mean this in some conspiratorial way. To the contrary, the programming that determines what we see on social media combines several metrics, including, but not limited to: (1) words and phrases that reflect high interest subject matter, (2) attention demonstrated by others regarding certain…
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