Growth

“Preparing the Soil”

When reading the parable of the sower in Luke 8, it’s natural to try to figure out which of the “soils” is truly born again. But actually, that misses the point. Surely we can say that the last type of soil represents a genuine believer’s heart because there’s lasting fruit. But again, the main point…

This Is Only a Test…

Daniel Burnham, the chief architect of the 1893 World’s Columbian Exposition in Chicago sought an incredible attraction to be the answer to the feature attraction at the previous world exposition in Paris—the Eiffel Tower. An engineer by the name of George Ferris submitted an idea—but it was so preposterous, Burnham immediately dismissed it. Nearly 4…

A Life-Long Process

All parents can attest to the wonder that is their child. Mom is especially tuned in when she figures out she’s going to have a baby. This months-long process occurring within may happen somewhat gradually, but not unnoticeably! At first, of course, mom can’t ignore the obvious physical signs taking place in her body. And…

Thankfully Opting Out

Looming on the horizon later this Thanksgiving week, Black Friday beckons the highly commercialized and materialistic West to shop. Luring us into the darkness with promises of unbeatable deals on everything from diamonds and luxury cars to toys and clothing, shoppers are urged to forgo sleep to take advantage of door-buster bargains, and then shop…

Beautiful Ugliness

We don’t watch very much TV in our household, but one program we enjoy watching occasionally is Aerial America that airs on the Smithsonian Channel. Each hour-long episode focuses on one state in America, such as Illinois, and gives a bird’s eye view of key places, landmarks, and geographical features of that state. Apparently, the…

Vital Signs

How’s your IRA doing these days? One of the ways you can keep track of it—though as I understand it, it’s not a great idea—is to keep your eye on the daily stock market report with all of its ups & downs. Probably a better method is to pay attention to those quarterly reports you…

Abundance!

Usually, if someone is heart-set on having an abundance of something, we tend to be rather critical of his greed and selfishness, right? Generally, that’s justifiable. In the Christian world, one of the greatest blights is the “prosperity gospel” crowd who preach that God wants you to have that big house, fat wallet, glistening Rolex,…