Each week, my church engages in the practice of sharing joys and concerns. Sharing details of our lives before the community of faith allows church members to get to know one...

Sunny blue skies, hot chocolate on a cold day, fresh flowers, fireworks, babies—all these things bring me joy. It comes to me in a burst of energy, gratitude, and happiness that...

Paul clearly evidences God’s power. Sometimes when I read his letters, I picture myself next to him, chained to the stone wall of a small, dark cell. I can feel despair...

When I became a mother, people naturally wanted to know about the baby. How much did she weigh? Who did she look like? How did we choose her name? After several...

Shortly after beginning work for Chevrolet, I received an e-mail from one of my college professors who reminded me of the old adage that “what’s good for General Motors is good...

Bloom where you are planted. Handstitched and framed in blue, these words adorned the wall of my grandmother’s kitchen. My mother repeated them to me during my first semester away at...

The disciples, amazed by Jesus’ demands, plead, “Increase our faith!” Jesus then responds with a parable that, at first glance, seems rather harsh. A servant doesn’t receive special praise for obedience....

The wide-ranging sources of sorrow and human suffering can overwhelm us. We may feel tempted to add tears of self-pity to our long list of tears. Why is life so hard?...

Join with me” Paul urges Timothy, “in suffering for the gospel.” “For this gospel I was appointed a herald and an apostle and a teacher” he writes. “For this reason I...

For eight years my wife and I lived in Scotland. Our three oldest children were born there. I remember how my parents would cry when, after a short visit with them...