♦ Keep your eyes peeled. “Situational awareness” is that 007-like sensitivity to warning signs or threats. ♦ Don’t pass the buck. Heroes don’t wait for others to take action; they step up and quickly. ♦ Put others first. “When someone dives into a frozen lake to save a child, they’re thinking altruistically, not, ‘Hey, what’s…
Children seldom misquote you. In fact, they usually repeat word for word what you shouldn’t have said. We no longer threaten to wash the mouths of children out with soap for using bad words, but maybe it’s some adults who need it more anyway. Children learn what they say and do from observing others. Unfortunately,…
Prayer Seed: Dear Abba, Search my heart and remove anything in my life that doesn’t please You. Remove these things so I can be useful to You and do Your bidding. In Jesus’ name, Amen.
Aspiration is what we want to have happen––our hopes and goals. Inspiration is the incentive we have to try to get our hopes and goals accomplished. For example, if we want to photograph a beautiful sunrise, we will get up early, find the ideal spot, and set up our camera. Why we want a picture…
The above is a question made famous by Dr. Phil McGraw of the Dr. Phil show on TV. When people are having problems in their relationships, he likes to ask how their strategy for getting along is working for them. Quite often the guest being interviewed suddenly has to admit that it is not working…
According to a traditional Hebrew story, Abraham was sitting outside his tent one evening when he saw an old man, weary from age and the journey, coming toward him. Abraham rushed out, greeted the man and invited him into his tent. There he washed the old man’s feet and gave him food and drink. The…
I taught visual arts for many years, first to elementary-age school children and college students from the university who were completing certification to teach art. Later I taught classroom teachers learning to integrate the arts into their curricula. I always reminded teacher-education majors and in-service teachers that they are not just teaching their subject matter,…
Prayer Seed: Dear Abba, Thank you for the gift of prayer. Thank you for allowing us to have a personal relationship and conversations with You. Thank you for encouraging us to keep on praying persistently and not give up. In Jesus’ name, Amen.
Prayer Seed: Dear Abba, Please help me to speak with meaningful and positive words. Remind me to talk more about the good things instead of the negative things in my life. In Jesus’ name, Amen.
When a person dies within a short period of time after his or her spouse or other loved one has died, we will often hear someone say, “She or he died of a broken heart.” Now, medical researchers have found a way to actually measure the effects. They are able to measure how under extreme…