Think About It

What do we hope to gain out of life? If there was one thing we could be known for after we departed this world, what would it be? When most of us are asked this question, we probably come up with a noble response. Some of us might say that we want to be remembered as someone who made the world a better place … others might remark that we would like to be known as someone who lived with integrity … and, maybe on a good day, we would cite Jesus’ admonition, “For what does it profit a man to gain the whole world, and forfeit his soul?” (Mark 8:36) and say that we will feel accomplished if we leave this world and head straight into eternal life. In all honesty, these are good answers; but there is an important follow-up question, “What are we doing to ensure our success?”. Are we investing our time and effort in making our mark on this world and ensuring our presence in heaven or are we merely hoping that somehow it will happen. We won’t leave a legacy by going to our jobs, then comi...

I don’t usually pay much attention to those “Online Reader Polls” that are often published in newspapers, but one got my attention the other day. The question was “Which of these pandemic habits will you miss the most?”. There were several choices that received varying degrees of responses, but the one that got the most support was “Chilling with your pets all day” (almost 42% of all votes). Now, before we move on, I have to say that I understand the unscientific nature of these polls, so I try not to take them too seriously; however, I do think this gives us a glimpse into our modern society. I like animals and we have even had several pets – from rabbits to horses – including a dog that lived in our house for over a decade. I understand that our pets become a part of our family, but today’s view of the value of pets and animals in our lives raises the question: why are they so important? Have we become so close to our animals because we have become distant from people? I und...

What are you going to get your father this Father’s Day? While traditional Father’s Day presents like ties and soap-on-a-rope may not be as in vogue as they once were, there are all kinds of cool and affordable stuff out there. Minor league baseball tickets, electronic gadgets and gift cards might be the 21st Century version of the “old standards”. However, if you would like to do something a little bit different – and maybe a bit more cost effective – how about sending your dad a note to tell him the influence he has had on your life? It may not be as spiffy as a $100 credit at Amazon.com ; but I would imagine it would have a more lasting impact. Often, when we thank of our fathers, we tend to recall their ability to teach us to hit a curve ball or how they could drive for miles on end without having to stop; but, is that how they really want to be remembered? Imagine the impact of a note that begins, “I love you because …” and ends with a tribute of a life well lived. Dads may...

I have been accused of a lot of things, but being a health nut has never been one of them. Through the years I have been on fitness routines, but don’t let that fool you, I have never fully embraced an overly healthy lifestyle. While I enjoy cooking and eating fruit and vegetables, I also have a hankering for junk food and fast food. There have been times in my life when I have done better and have felt healthier, but it is easy for me to fall back into bad habits. The reason I bring up this frailty in my life is that I see it played out in more areas that in nutrition. Take, for example, in the way we process information. It is easy for us to get snippets of information from our “trusted” news sources. It is handy to rely on “clickbait” to find out what is happening. We are apt to pick up a quick quip here or a quote there and convince ourselves that we are all caught up with what’s going on. The problem with this informational junk food is that we never really get a good b...

If you want to be criticized in today’s world, just try to be overtly optimistic. We live in an Eeyoreistic environment that is quick to complain and hesitant to see the Pollyannaish value found in broadcasting good news and an expectation that things are going to be okay. (I realize I just conjoined my metaphors, but I think you get my point.) Modern society is quick to critique and hesitant to hope. While some people call this pragmatic, I am more inclined to see it as problematic. Over the last few months, we have heard a lot about depression, hopelessness and suicide. While people are quick to blame this on the pandemic, these challenges have been with us longer than the COVID-19. Negativism challenged society long before masks became chic. I will be the first to be thankful for a return to human interaction, but if we want to really solve these problems the key is developing an optimistic outlook on life. When we adjust our worldview to see the good that is being done in ...

Last Wednesday evening we had a powerful storm come through our region. There was quite a bit of wind, some pretty intense thunder (it was raining too hard to see the lightning) and a lot of water. According to reports there was somewhere between 3 and 6 inches of rain in just a couple of hours. I have seen a lot of rain in my lifetime, but because of last week’s heat and humidity, this was a deluge! While this was a pretty impressive storm, I think the thing that astounded me was driving back to work 12 hours later. On Wednesday night the ditches were filled with water and any low laying area either became a pond or a roaring creek, but by Thursday morning I was hard-pressed to find any standing water. As I drove around that morning, I was struck by the fact that while the storm may have been impressive to me, to the land of Southern Maryland, it was just another rainstorm that had to be overcome and processed. In fact, if anything, what I noticed was how green everything had ...

As I was driving to worship services Sunday morning, I heard a song by Steven Curtis Chapman that I had never heard before. The title of the song is “His Strength Is Perfect”, but it was this lyric in the song that really got my attention, “I can do all things through Christ who give me strength. But sometimes a I wonder what He can do through me.”. I was quite familiar with the scriptural reference, “I can do all things through Him who strengthens me.” (Philippians 4:13), but it was the commentary that struck me. It is easy for believers to feel the confidence we have through Jesus, but have we ever given much thought to the value we bring to His cause? We can overcome a lot with the power of Jesus, but are we living the type of lives that reflect His wonders out into the world? It is great to feel the comfort and confidence we have by being a part of Christ’s church, but let’s never overlook our need to be active and alive. Jesus has the power to make a difference inside us...