Hagar’s story from the Bible isn’t the first one anyone thinks of, yet it is our story so many times. You’ll find it in Genesis 16. It is...

The scene is private.  We would have seen nothing unusual if we had been visitors to the Temple that day.  A young couple brought their...

My favorite Christmas angel story is not when Mary receives her message from an angel. It is the story of Zechariah and his angel visit....

When the disciples needed to replace Judas, it was not a playground exercise of choosing by personal preference. This was a critical...

John Mark surfaces in the beginning of the early church.  The first time we meet him, he is introduced as the son of Mary at whose home...

It was not a social gathering at the house of Mary, mother of John Mark, in Jerusalem.  It was a prayer meeting.  Their spiritual leader,...

Throw a piece of iron in water and it will sink faster than a ship with a hole in it. No one expects a hunk of iron to float to the...

Ezekiel 2-3:3 Do you have an appetite for God’s Word? I mean, literally? Do you eat it for breakfast, lunch, or supper? Do you digest...

Acts 20:7-12 Who hasn’t fallen asleep during a sermon? Sometimes it has more to do with late nights and stressful days than the quality...

When a donkey brays, people call him stubborn. But what do you call a donkey who speaks for God? That’s what happened to Balaam on his...

I was 7 or 8 when I tried to change my name. I thought I had that authority. After all, it was my name, wasn’t it? My given name,...

Hagar ran away. You would have, too. She was tired of Sara's taunts and sarcasm. She was tired of no compassion. She was tired of no...

Control is a risky partner. When we are in charge and try to secure something we want or need; it feels right, deserved, and perfectly...

What do you do when someone or some-thing has control over your life? We’ve felt this angst with the Pandemic. Even if we did everything...

What do you do when life is out of control? I don’t know about you, but I get testy, which is just a polite word for cranky. I don’t want...

The Magi give me hope for every secular-minded, God-ignoring person on this planet. The Magi were God’s first clue that He sent His son...

We don’t know much about Mary’s mother except that she had one. There are several ways to interpret the silence.. Maybe she had died...

We don’t make much of Joseph. He comes into the first Christmas scene only briefly. He was engaged to Mary and obeyed an angel in a dream...

Is courage just an over-positive accounting of your skills and belief in yourself? Is it a reckless nod to adventure and risk? What is...

Most of the New Testament scripture I remember the best, Paul wrote. He was a master in communicating the truths of transformation. He...