Several years ago, some friends invited me to join them for the home opener of the newly crowned (again) Super Bowl champion Pittsburgh Steelers. Going through the front gate, we were each given a “free” Steelers poster to be decorated with stickers that could be purchased at local grocery stores. When I calculated the cost […]
Archive | Freedom
RSS feed for this sectionThe Price of Unbridled Freedom
Isaac Newton presented his three laws of motion way back in 1686. The third law, which I learned in school, states that for every action there is an equal and opposite reaction. This law proved painfully true a few weeks ago when I played a game of pool with my son. In spite of my […]
Why Do the Wicked Prosper?
Sometimes, it feels as though living right is the wrong thing to do. Our world is full of self-absorbed people who cheat and oppress others with no apparent consequences. Meanwhile, the lives of virtuous people seem to overflow with hardship. God, it appears, looks the other way. If the prosperity of selfish people bothers you, […]
Why You’ve Lost Even If You Won
While on anniversary getaways with another couple, we would often play guys against the gals board or card games. Our wonderful wives rubbed it in when they won and gave us a difficult time when they lost. It didn’t take long for my buddy and me to realize that we lost even when we won. […]
Why Egocentric Ministry Makes Apathetic People
“Whose kingdom are you building, yours or Mine?” These words spoken to me by the Holy Spirit were not physically audible, but they could not have been louder. On that day in the fall of 1993, my life was forever changed. Since starting into college ministry, I had been working tirelessly to get our campus […]
Overwhelmed by Humanitarian Needs
Brrr! It is COLD in western Pennsylvania. Last night the temperature dropped to -9°. It hasn’t been that cold here in over 20 years! This morning, my car didn’t want to start any more than I wanted to go outside. Last night, during the news reports about our current “polar vortex”, a commercial kept airing […]
What Made America Great
For over 200 years the Thomas Nelson Company has held its goal to “honor God and serve people.” This made the publisher’s actions last week all the more interesting as they bowed to public pressure and pulled conservative author David Barton’s book The Jefferson Lies from their publication. I know people who have followed Barton’s […]
National Lemonade Freedom Day – Seriously?
What will you be doing on August 18, 2012? That happens to be National Lemonade Freedom Day. No, this isn’t another installment of my quirky humor. August 18 actually is National Lemonade Freedom Day. Apparently some folks feel it is time to take a stand against what they feel is ludicrous government over-regulation. Hence, they […]
Independence Day
Living in the state of Pennsylvania has always carried a rich legacy of history. We’ve long held the nickname of The Keystone State, due in part to the abundance of old stone arch railroad bridges built with keystones to anchor them together. William Penn, Valley Forge, the Liberty Bell, the signing of the Declaration of […]
How to Catch a Crustacean
Are you a fan of lobster? It is without question a delicacy in many parts of the world, but such hasn’t always been the case. Early settlers to New England found lobsters to be so plentiful that at times they could wade into the ocean and capture them by hand. An overabundance of lobsters actually […]