Earlier this month I told you about how some of my friends talked me into going throughout the neighborhood soliciting “donations.” Well, that wasn’t the only time I got suckered into stuff. I remember being tricked into everything from trading several valuable baseball cards for one semi-valuable card, getting caught in the “Tom Sawyer” approach of doing someone else’s work and thinking it was fun, as well as buying gym memberships that I never used. I know that each of…
It is not uncommon for us to refer to life today as a “rat race.” While each of you was in school, there were days when you were shuttled to and from school, to music lessons or games, to home, or to church. Many nights I arrived home late at night only to find you all sleeping and had to leave before you got up for school. I saw your mom’s stress as she rushed about getting you ready for…
While I was growing up and even today it is not uncommon to hear a sermon focused on what is wrong with another denomination or “Christian” group. The speaker normally wants to ensure that we avoid these heathens, stay in our present pew, and buy into his/her understanding of “rightly dividing the word of truth.” (2 Timothy 2:15) I am not picking at anyone, just the way of thinking. It was a similar mindset that moved the English Parliament to…
This day in 588 BC, Nebuchadnezzar began his siege against Jerusalem and King Zedekiah. It lasted two-and-half years. During that time the inhabitants of the city had no access to the outside world and according to Jeremiah 21:9 they were doomed to die by the sword, famine, or plague. From multiple sources we know that within those walls theft, murder, disease, and cannibalism were rampant among those who were once friends and neighbors. Life was so bad that I’m not…
In 1982 God shook the foundations of my life. He yanked my chain and stopped me in midstream. He saw that the lifestyle foundations I laid were destined for failure because they were motivated by selfishness and my concept of success. As the world I had built around me began collapsing, my vulnerability and willingness to “hear” improved. He was clever. He nudged me toward His path through my daughters. My hard head and self-serving nature had a weakness and…
Tracy and I had been married about 10 years when a friend approached me with a business opportunity. He went through the details of how easy it was to make money buying and selling used cars. Everything he said made sense and it looked like easy money. When I told Tracy about it, she objected from the start. However, since I was a “businessman” and she was a housewife, I overruled her and immediately proceeded to lose tens of thousands…