Failure.  Tough word.  Heavy, painful and probably a memory explodes in your mind.  Early in my ministry in Kentucky I was leading a class for new believers.  We were sitting in a circle, and I wanted us to go over a large portion of Scripture.  I had each person read a couple verses.  We got to one middle aged man who got very angry, jumped up and left.  Apparently, he could not read, and I...  Read More

        Have you ever had a person break a promise or agreement with you? My wife and I were foster parents for several years.  One of the saddest things to watch was when a parent promised to visit with their child and then they would not show up.  The child was devasted.  Or maybe you stood in a church in front of family and friends and pledged to love, honor and cherish a person for the rest of...  Read More

     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...  Read More

      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...  Read More

     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...  Read More

      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 ...  Read More

      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...  Read More

       The apostle Paul wrote, “Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer” (Romans 12:12).  To be joyful in hope is absolutely crucial in a dark and broken world.  Hope is simply confident expectation in God.  One doctrine that helps us live in confident expectation is God’s sovereignty.  Christians believe that God does not cause everything, but controls everything.  He has com...  Read More

     For three and a half years I worked on a suicide intervention phone line.  Six nights a week people would call me drowning in hopelessness, sometimes literally with a gun to his head or a bottle of pills in her hand.  My job was to share hope, to help people find enough hope to keep moving forward.  Hope is simply confident expectation, and it is essential.  As a Christian I believe that Jesu...  Read More

      In Romans 12 the apostle Paul shares with us how Christians should live.  First, live for God.  He tells us to offer our bodies as living sacrifices (Romans 12:1), meaning to lay aside our own desires and follow him, putting all our energy and resources at his disposal and trusting him to guide us. It has been said after our passing, most sum up someone’s life in a sentence.  What is your se...  Read More

     As New Year’s Day approaches many people spend time reflecting and deciding to make some changes in their lives.  Some write out new year’s resolutions.  And yet it seems that most people do not actually succeed with those resolutions over the long term.  So how do we change?  How do we grow? I believe God is always working in our lives to help us grow and change but we have a part to play.  ...  Read More

     Christmas is almost upon us.  This beautiful holiday dominates our December every year.  But how do we get the most out of it?  How do we prepare ourselves for it?     First, pause and reflect.  December is very busy for most people.  There can be travel or house guests, there are presents to buy and extra events to attend.  Make sure that you take a little time in these final days leading up...  Read More