One of our sons and his wife just had twin boys.  They are home now but they spent two weeks in NICU at Fairbanks Memorial Hospital.  One of the insights that the medical staff emphasized with the new parents is the importance of touch.  They encouraged the parents to hold their babies as much as possible.  Skin to skin contact is vital.  I recently read, “In a study initiated by the Touch Re...

      When I go to the airport to fly out of Fairbanks, I am required to show my ID.  When I vote in our elections, once again I must show some credentials.  When I visit my bank, once again out comes some identification credentials.  When you read through the gospels about Jesus much of his ministry is sharing his credentials.  Jesus claimed to be the long-awaited Jewish Messiah.  He claimed to b...

     In the gospel of Mark there is a profound scene where Jesus calls four of his apostles.  This scene is the essence of what Christians call discipleship. The text says:“16As Jesus walked beside the Sea of Galilee, he saw Simon and his brother Andrew casting a net into the lake, for they were fishermen. 17“Come, follow me,” Jesus said, “and I will send you out to fish for people.” 18At once the...

      There is a surprising story found in the gospels.  John the Baptist, the forerunner of Jesus, found himself in prison awaiting his execution.  In that prison he had a serious moment of doubt.  He sent some of his followers to Jesus to ask, “are you the expected one or should we look for someone else?” (Luke 7:19).  What?  The prophet whose primary job was to announce Jesus is Messiah is not ...

      Dr. Curt Thompson says, “to be human is to suffer” (The Deepest Place, xii).  As we go through life, suffering will have different faces—disease, divorce, conflict and disappointment.  There is a character trait that is required to survive and even thrive through the suffering we all experience; it’s perseverance.  Perseverance is the continued effort to do or achieve something despite the d...