Category: Practical Faith

Challenging stops along my Faith Journey.

Experiencing Nothing

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We were all part of a long-standing Bible study, a group of men from divergent congregations, bound by common commitment to Jesus Christ as Lord, and dedicated to “sampling” the monastic life in St. Gregory’s Abbey, a monastery within the Episcopal Church. We thought we knew what we were getting into, and, on one level, we did, but there is a big difference between studying about the monastic experience and actually living it, even for a short period. Continue reading

Good Morning, Lord

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I awaken. It is still dark and very quiet. I look at the clock – 1:55 a.m.  I, sigh, turn over, and snuggle down into the warmth of my bed, trying to return to sleep, but it evades me. My mind is at work, a left-over thought from yesterday, or a new one for today? I quiet my mind and try some tricks of relaxation… nothing. After a time, I roll over, look, again, at the clock — 2:12 a.m. I finally accept the fact that I am wide awake. To what purpose?

Somewhere in those 17 minutes of wakefulness my mind turns to Jesus in gratitude for just being Lord, or, perhaps, He can help me return to sleep. No, there is something else. I reach over, turn on the bed-side lamp — my day begins. Continue reading

Monkeys Jumping on the Bed

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Remember that nursery rhyme?  Five Little monkeys jumping on the bed one fell off and bumped his head.  I didn’t realize how indelibly imprinted that rhyme was in my mind until one evening while watching a family movie, reference was made to monkeys jumping on the bed.  And that was like turning on a slideshow of that time in my life when one of my daughters was singing that rhyme.

We all have triggers that opens up pieces of memory past, mostly pleasant memories, has been my experience.  Sometimes memories are part of birthday celebrations, family reunions, or maybe just a special happening in the course of an ordinary day; A hummingbird, just outside your window, that seemed to hang in the air, looking at you, just showing off, or a mountain view, a sunset, a flower garden. Continue reading

That Worship Service

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Three teenagers in an old car, heading for the beaches of Florida. I was 17 and we had just graduated from high school. Two PKs, preacher kids, and one we called “the ringer” had slept in our car at a rest stop. We had grabbed breakfast at a Stuckey’s somewhere in Dodge County, Georgia. As we stood in the parking lot, we could hear singing coming from an old church nearby, and were reminded it was Sunday. We looked at one another, then crossed the road and walked in. Continue reading

A Man’s Reach Should Exceed His Grasp

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Chicago. A week before Christmas, some years ago. It is cold!  Snow on the streets and sidewalks.

Then, I heard the voice of God say to me:  “Help him!”  I looked, there was no one there.  Then I heard the Voice again, saying “Help him!”, and I looked again and that is when I saw, lying in the middle of Clark St., an elderly man, unable to rise. Cars were driving around him.  So I acted, I helped, and the act became a focus point of my thoughts the remainder of that night and the next day. Continue reading

How Did She Do That?

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One year ago, January 23, 2016, Joanne, the love of my life, the loving mom to our four kids and extended family, and friend to all, died.  Nearly five years earlier, she had been diagnosed with interstitial lung disease, most likely caused by an allergic reaction to the drug amiodorone. This disease causes scarring of the lungs and has a progressive effect on lung function, leading to death.  There is no known cure. Her prognosis was three to five years.

How does one react to the realization of such a prognosis?  How does one live each day with that in your life, just down the road a piece?  How does that effect how you interact with family and a wide circle of friends?  For her, it was her grace, love and calmness that were on display.  A close friend once observed that Joanne was the “personification of grace”, and she was!  As time passed I had cause to ask: “How does she do that?” Continue reading

Will They Know We Are Christians…

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Derek Hill, member of the leadership team for the Bible Society Group of Great Britain, has an article on the “What Christians Want To Know” website entitled “Doers of The Word: 6 Tips to Living Out Your Faith”.  Hill does not imply that his six tips are the “keys to the kingdom”, but they are a good start to living out your faith.  Included among those tips were four that really stood out for me.  My comments follow each tip: Continue reading

On Your Faith Journey

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When was the last time you examined the elements of your faith journey?  You know, those ups and downs, that inspirational moment when an event or a sermon, or some Bible study made a real difference.  Maybe it was a crisis in your life or the life of your family.  Perhaps the change happened in an ambulance on the way to a hospital.

Whatever that was, how did that change make a difference in your life? What followed that part of your faith journey? Did you find yourself more open to other’s needs? Did you seek to love your neighbor?  Did you ever consider that your personal faith journey is reflected in four specific events, or roads, documented in the New Testament? Continue reading

God’s Purpose, God’s Church

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I’ve been a member of the same men’s Bible study group for over 30 years.  During that time someone will, on occasion, raise the question of studying the Book of Revelation? Just this spring we committed ourselves to that study, trying to be thorough, taking one verse at a time, digging deep, using at least 7 commentaries and trying to understand the vision and the message.

Revelation is best tackled with a rich, creative imagination.  It is a book filled with images and symbols, but at its very core, Revelation is a book of hope!  But Revelation is also a book of warning.  Things are not as they should be in the churches. Christ calls the churches to commit to living in righteousness, and we need to understand what that commitment means for it is the key to determining God’s purpose for the church, specifically, your church. Continue reading

Life as It Comes

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Sir William Gilbert (of Gilbert and Sullivan fame) in his treatise on “Patience” offers this bit of advice:  “Life’s a pudding full of plums;  Care’s a canker that benumbs, therefore waste our elocution on impossible solution?  Let us take it as it comes!” Take it as it comes, bumps, bruises and all.

“One morning, months ago, I visited a good friend who had been ill for some time. He was a man that exuded energy and goodness and talking with him was such a treat for he had a knack of putting his friends at ease and engaged. Each time we visited, the conversation included a nice dose of teasing and catching up, and often it turned to matters of health. Shortly after that visit, at 89 years of age, he played 9 holes of golf with his wife and enjoyed the day, without having to pay with aching joints or fatigue. He told me then that he would play in our summer golf league, and he did, for the first few weeks! Continue reading

Pray Without Ceasing?

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Pray without ceasing?  Hmm.

A number of years ago, I ran a little experiment.  I was teaching a course in Adolescent Psychology at a midwest college, and because of circumstances in my life and in the classroom, I decided to explore the power of prayer through a very simple exercise.  Over a period of 14 class meetings, I alternated each class period.  On the first day I prayed about the lesson, about being at peace, and asking God to be present and give that peace to the students.  On the second day, I did not pray about the lesson, the students or myself.  On the third day, I prayed, and on the fourth I did not.  I continued this through all 14 class meetings. Continue reading