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…
“Women worry that men will forget everything. Men worry that women will remember everything.” Yes, it’s a joke, but unfortunately, these kinds of perceptions are all too often perpetuated in our current culture where putting each other down is a common occurrence. We’ve all heard wives and husbands make pointed jokes at their spouses’ expense,…
A fire started in the grasslands close to a farm. The volunteer fire department was called. The volunteers arrived in a dilapidated old fire truck. They rumbled straight toward the fire, drove right into the middle of the flames, and stopped! The firefighters jumped from the truck and frantically started spraying water in all directions. …
A young man had been fishing for a long time. His friend came over and saw that he hadn’t caught any fish. He asked his friend, “Why aren’t you catching any fish?” “Bad luck? God’s will? Who knows?” came the reply. “What are you using for bait?” asked the friend. The boy fishing said, “I’m…
In one of the recent super-hero movies, several heroes team up to save the world. One of the more experienced heroes is advising a younger one who is finding the situation overwhelming. He says, “You don’t have to do it all. Just save one!” That is good advice in many situations. We can’t do it…
A wealthy man was out for a walk when he saw two men eating grass by the roadside. He asked them, “Why are you eating grass?” “We don’t have any money for food,” the men replied. “You can come to my house,” said the rich man. “But sir, I have a wife and two children…
After a very long and boring sermon, the parishioners filed out of the church saying nothing to the preacher. At the end of the line was a person who always commented on the sermons. “Pastor, today your sermon reminded me of the peace and love of God!” he said. The pastor was thrilled! “No-one has…
The answer to the above question is, “every month we are aware”. The official month to wear the black ribbon (or whatever color it might be) does not matter. What is important is that we pay attention to the attitudes we carry around about people who are mentally ill. This article could have started with…
That warning in Matthew 7:1 reminds us that we are not to make distinctions among the people we interact with. James 2:1-4 puts it this way: “My brothers and sisters, believers in our glorious Lord Jesus Christ must not show favoritism. Suppose a man comes into your meeting wearing gold ring and fine clothes, and a poor…
Benjamin Franklin once said: “Those who would give up essential liberty, to purchase a little temporary safety, deserve neither liberty nor safety.” That quote often comes up in the context of new technology and concerns about government surveillance. But it fits many other situations as well. We Americans particularly value personal freedom. We seem to think that freedom…