Thirst Quencher

Thirst Quencher

One hot summer day when I was in high school, I was stacking and unloading bales of hay when I stopped sweating. I felt nauseous, had a headache and tried to quench the insatiable thirst that came from being severely dehydrated. It’s essential for human beings to get...
Kindness, Not Cruelty

Kindness, Not Cruelty

My wife and I had just finished a lengthy bike ride, and I hadn’t slept well the night before. So I was pretty tired when we started to rearrange some bedroom furniture. I began complaining, was critical, and found fault with her in an unkind way for which I later...
Have Mercy

Have Mercy

When the car my parents had parked in an empty lot with a “for sale” sign in the window was deliberately set on fire, my primal instinct for swift and severe punishment rose within me. The natural inclination to do harm to those who’ve insulted or injured us comes...
Run Away and Run After

Run Away and Run After

At the Iowa State Track and Field Meet at Drake Stadium, runners don’t run away from anything, but they run after the victor’s prize.  In 1 Timothy 6:11, Paul instructs his “true child in the faith” to do both. “But flee from these things (the quest for great...
Faith, Not Fear, in the New Year

Faith, Not Fear, in the New Year

The offensive lineman drove his shoulder into my knee as I was making a tackle. The resulting injury in the first game of my junior year in high school ended my football career. My dreams of following in my father’s footsteps and playing at the next level were...
Doing Good Deeds

Doing Good Deeds

After the April blizzard my father told me to go next door and shovel the snow off of Ethel’s driveway. As an eleven year old, moving twelve inches of wet snow was a daunting and discouraging task. Ethel was an elderly single woman who worked for my father, so I sort...