Category: 2011 Column

Cadi Forbes lives with a horrible weight. Only 10 years old, she bears the guilt of her younger sister Elen’s death, and feels the shame of her mother’s rejection every day. This anguish is compounded when her grandmother dies, the only woman who loved her unconditionally. In the opening scene of the play, Cadi is … Continue reading The Last Sin Eater: Must-see theater

I was running last Saturday, listening to a teaching for fathers as I pounded the country pavement. Todd Wilson was talking to 500 men at a recent conference about the privileges of fatherhood. He said, “Whatever your job is, whether you are a welder, an engineer, or a pastor, the truth is that if you … Continue reading Family memories and Father’s Day blessings

Do you make arguments in prayer? Not arguments based on strife or selfishness, but humble appeals built on sound, biblical reasoning? As I studied Psalm 143 last week, that’s something I learned from David. He did not just make his requests known in prayer, he also put arguments behind them. He appealed first to the … Continue reading Lay hold of God’s willingness in prayer

I picked up a camp chair in the garage one night last week to put it in the car. I didn’t see the wasp that was on the strap, but he saw me. The pain he inflicted on the fleshy pad of my middle finger, as Bill Cosby used to say, was tremendous. I put … Continue reading Look into your heart and recieve God’s changes

John G. Paton was born in a farm cottage not far from Dumfries, Scotland, on May 24, 1824, the eldest of 11 children. He set out to learn the trade of his father — the manufacture of stockings. For 14 hours a day he manipulated one of the six “stocking frames” in his father’s workshop, … Continue reading Dads are the best heroes

Tony grew up in a legalistic home with a workaholic father who was never pleased with his work. “I was awkward and uncoordinated,” Tony said, “and when I was unable to meet his expectations, my reward was a fist. I was punished for misunderstanding what my father wanted me to do. I was punished when … Continue reading God is there in your darkest hour