A few weeks ago I copied this from the page of my facebook friend, Janet Nunn.
It was a photo from a sign with no author attributed. It speaks to a need felt by so many people who feel trapped, and seemingly unable to break a negative cycle in their life. Continue reading
Filed under facebook friday
Last Saturday night Norma Jean and I enjoyed an evening attending the Florida College holiday concert,.
In addition to all the musical groups at FC performing, my friend and preaching colleague, Ralph Walker, entertained the audience with some wonderful stories and a reading of “The Night Before Christmas.” Among the stories Ralph told was about a big mistake he made last Christmas.
Ralph said that he decided last year instead of buying Christmas presents for his 9 grandchildren, he would give them money. Continue reading
Filed under Discipleship
It was a rainy Sunday afternoon and a little brother and sister were playing “Noah and the Ark.”
An old shoe box was their ark. The bathtub was their flood. And all their plastic, toy animals were safe in the ark.
After the flood was over, they decided to offer a sacrifice to God. Continue reading
Filed under Discipleship, Passage To Ponder
In her weekly column, Grace Notes, Nancy Kennedy, the religion writer for our local Citrus County Chronicle related this story about visiting a church one Christmas Eve. Continue reading
Filed under Jesus
Maybe more than ever our lives are defined by busyness. Especially at this time of year.
Added to the normal obligations of life, family and work, are gifts to buy. Travel plans to make. Parties to attend, or host. And a myriad of other issues as we wrap up 2022.
So, the concept of contemplation might be a good thing for us to… well…contemplate. Continue reading
Filed under Discipleship
Good Morning from Beverly Hills, Florida
All 5 of our posts this week have been dealing with the issue of stress. It’s something that we all face. Family stress. Financial stress. Relationship stress. Work stress. Spiritual stress. And now we’re facing holiday stress.
If you missed any or all of these posts, I hope you will read them and share them with others. Each one contains several helpful links to online resources that further amplify the points made in the posts.
Here are the live links to each post. Continue reading
Filed under Weekly Recap
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“The truth is that stress doesn’t come from your boss, your kids, your spouse, traffic jams, health challenges, or other circumstances. It comes from your thoughts about your circumstances,” opines Andrew Bernstein, author of “The Myth of Stress.”
While you may find that assertion unsettling, exaggerated, or inaccurate, stay with me. Continue reading
Filed under Discipleship, Life, Stress
(NOTE: Apparently there was a glitch yesterday that caused many of our email readers unable to access the link to yesterday’s post on stress. If you missed it, here’s a link to part 3. Click here. )
“Gratitude is a strong strategy to help minimize stress in our lives” affirmed Najma Khorrami, in Psychology Today.
“Gratitude lowers stress hormones in the body,” stated Khorrami a global public health professional. She explains the process this way. Continue reading
Filed under Discipleship, Life, Stress
“Even though my mom passed away seven years ago, it still feels like yesterday,” recalls Daniel H. Gibson Jr. “I was actually in the room when it happened. I was playing her a song when, suddenly, she suffered from a heart attack she wouldn’t recover from.”
“Christmas was my mom’s favorite time of the year; she loved spending time with family and watching her grandchildren open their presents,” Gibson reminisces. “Ever since her passing, the holidays have never quite felt the same. So for me, the holiday season is always accompanied by a tinge of sadness.” Continue reading
Filed under Discipleship, Life, Stress
Matthew Rogers tells the story about a brother and sister singing “Silent Night” in their school chorus.
The little boy concluded the song with the words, “Sleep in heavenly beans.”
His sister elbowed him and said. “No, it’s not beans. It’s peas!”
I suppose for many people during the holiday season, the song might as well end with beans or peas. Because the stress of the season is anything but peace. Continue reading
Filed under Discipleship, Life, Stress
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