Your Father’s plans for you
As you all know, George Washington was elected our first President after leading the colonists in the Revolutionary War, and eventually gaining our independence. He never fathered any children of his own, although he did help raise two of Martha’s children from her first marriage, as well as two of her grandchildren. Still he has been […]
Your Father’s gift for you
Whenever I think about my dad, the first thought that always seems to come to mind is what he gave me that he himself did not have – a dad who was there when needed. When he was about 12 his dad deserted the family and went to South America in search of gold. He […]
Each family member’s uniqueness
From the first time I donned a uniform of any type, I was called Coker. For sporting events, it was written across the back, at business or professional meetings there were stickers or name tags, and in my military fatigues or dress uniform the family name was what took precedence, rather than my given name. […]
The God Family
As each of you sat down at the table every evening and looked around, you saw individuals with different hair and eyes, and dissimilar dispositions but were often poles apart with likes and dislikes. Yet each of you came from the same gene pool, were fed the same mother’s milk, ate the same food for […]
Your identity as part of the God family
As I read The Cokers of Carolina I began to realize the strong belief system, similar mindsets, and work ethic in that book mirrored the words and actions of my dad. The attitudes and values he passed on to me were not just his, but those accumulated and embraced by and passed down from generations […]
Identifying sin
Early in my senior year of high school, I had a very attractive and popular girl in my class named _________ ask me to walk with her at graduation. I said yes, and took great joy in having her as my partner, just because of who she was. I decided then that perhaps we should […]
Preparing your heart to be with God
It was just about this time of year when our platoon finished the majority of our training and conditioning. We packed up and moved to the rifle range. After weeks of carrying and cleaning that rifle, I was finally going to get a chance to use it! While I had played with BB guns growing […]
Walking with God
Whenever my daughter Rebekah leaves me a note or a birthday or anniversary present, there is almost always a little something extra with it — chocolate. Whenever I spend time with my daughter Elaina, we always seek out a bakery or chocolate shop to ensure our sweet tooth is satisfied. Although this may seem insignificant […]
Focusing on the good and holy
I walked to the mailbox every day for over three weeks before the package with my name on it arrived. It had been a long process of eating that less-than-tasty cereal to get the box tops necessary to order my secret decoder ring. I couldn’t wait until Saturday morning to see what the next message […]
We can’t be the center of attention
Today in 1473 Nicholas Copernicus the founder of modern astronomy was born. He came from a Godly family. He was appointed a canon in the cathedral of Frauenburg where he spent his days in a sheltered, academic lifestyle. His brother (an Augustinian monk) and his sister (a Benedictine nun) embraced similar lives of solitude. What […]