Archives for November 2013

Looking Back with Graditude, Looking Forward with Confidence

When Abraham Lincoln declared Thanksgiving a national holiday, our country was in the middle of the Civil War.  Loved ones were being lost daily on the battlefields in America and our country was being torn apart and full of uncertainty. It seemed there was little to be thankful for.  Yet Lincoln saw the need to seek God and be thankful for His mercy and provision during the hard times, and ask for our country’s healing and prosperity in the future.  It was a declaration of hope and trust in God that despite the turmoil in the present, God Continue Reading

Jackie Kennedy and the Gift of Encouragement

“Your love has given me great joy and encouragement, because you, brother, have refreshed the hearts of the Lord's people.”  Philemon 1:7 Jackie Kennedy Onassis was known for her beauty, poise and elegance and is considered a classic style icon, much like Audrey Hepburn and Coco Chanel.   But what stands out most about Jackie is her renown for writing the perfect thank you note.  Her correspondence was so effective that it notably inspired French President Charles DeGaulle, moved Pakistan’s President Ayub Khan, and comforted Kathleen Graham Continue Reading

A Faith Test

I remember back to my grammar school days. (Yes, I can actually remember back that far.)  Of course we studied math, science, English, and the other grade school subjects. We worked our way through homework assignments and hours of classroom instruction, reading the textbooks and absorbing information. Then at long last, there would come a day of reckoning. Test Day.  That was the day we were put through our paces, our teachers eager to see how much knowledge we had retained.  Our test results would help them determine if we were ready to go to Continue Reading

Roots and Wings and Parenting Things

“There are two lasting bequests we can give our children. One is roots.  The other is wings.” Hodding Carter, Jr. Like every parent I know, I’ve made my share of blunders. There are times I wonder if something I said or did in one of my many moments of impatience permanently warped my children, and that’s why I’m so often tempted to throw my hands up and plunge into “passive parenting” mode.    Sometimes it seems they could do a lot better than to have me as a parent, and they could do a better job on their own! But then I realize that Continue Reading