My brother is responsible for this blog though he would never admit it. He’s kind of quiet that way. In fact, sometimes he’s so quiet that I don’t even think he is paying attention. When our family is Zooming (possibly  a nominee for 2020’s word of the year?), I don’t think he’s listening because he seems to be always looking at his phone. But then all of a sudden all of our faces slide to the right, and he is sharing his screen, and it’s then I realize––oh––he has been listening.



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As we near the end of 2020, we are, paradoxically, all in a different place and yet in the same place. 

Some of you have endured incredible hardships this year, and at times it is difficult to keep going. For you, I would like to share Mandisa’s “Overcomer” video (courtesy of my brother). Most of us will recognize the four individuals in the video, but if you don’t, they are Robin Roberts, Scott Hamilton, Hannah Curlee, and Gabby Giffords. May this video be an encouragement to you.

All of us, have at times felt a loss of hope, an absence of peace, and/or a lack of trust. For all of us, I would like to share a couple of verses, a quote, and a video shared via my brother’s Zoom Sunday school class. I will refrain from comment and let the words speak directly to you.

May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit. (Romans 15:13)

You will keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on you, because he trusts in you. (Isaiah 26:3)

“God whispers to us in our pleasures, speaks in our conscience, but shouts in our pains; it is his megaphone to rouse a deaf world.” C.S. Lewis

Finally, a song and video by Lincoln Brewster to encourage a very weary world. It reminds us, first, of the power and love of God and the beauty of the world He created. But, if you listen to the end, we are reminded again that it only takes faith the size of a mustard seed and the trust of a child.

May God speak love, peace, and hope into you this Christmas.

I have never been extremely domestic. My days of making my own clothes saw me sewing items that required no zippers, no buttons or buttonholes, or any sleeve but ragland. Any pattern that had the word “simple” in them but included one of the above was lying.

I am not much of a cook either––but I recently purchased an item that has improved my culinary skills tremendously.




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After reading various reviews, and upon the recommendation of family members and friends, I finally broke down and bought an Instant Pot. I immediately went online and looked for the “50 Best Instant Pot Recipes” then culled through those to find the easiest. I have been nothing but pleased with the results. However, I did learn a valuable lesson.

After a nice vegetable soup experience––very nice I might add––I moved on to chicken tortilla soup, one of my favorites. However, I made a slight miscalculation in my shopping list. First, I forgot to buy oregano, didn’t have marjoram (which was second best according to a website), and had to settle for thyme, a distant third.

But more importantly, I forgot to buy tortilla strips, and I only purchased half the required quantity of chicken. I think you can see where this is going. Chicken tortilla soup without chicken and tortilla strips is … well … not quite chicken tortilla soup.

Our Christian lives sometimes reflect this same miscalculation. We are determined to demonstrate all of the fruits of the spirit (love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control), yet we either don’t pay attention to what we plop in the pot, or we substitute.   

Instead of filling ours heart, soul, and mind with God’s Word (the source for our spiritual nutrients), we chose to feed on the world’s diet provided through any medium: written, visual, personal contact. For many of us, the ratio between the time spent with secular sources in relation to biblical and spiritual ones can be substantially lopsided. I just calculated mine and it was an embarrassing 6 to 1.

Matthew 15:18 begins with Jesus saying, “What comes out of the mouth proceeds from the heart…”

Even the secular world would agree. Aristotle on talking about “excellence” once said, “We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, then, is not an act, but a habit.”

The important part of that quote is the first part: “We are what we repeatedly do,” because as Jesus reminded us, what we  say, (and by extension do) comes from the heart. And so the basic question again is … what are you feeding your heart…your soul…your mind?

Just as we can’t expect our physical health or stamina to improve if we don’t change our diet, neither can we expect our spiritual life and Christian walk to improve if we ingest what the world is feeding us rather than God’s Word.

Sometime this week take a survey of your spiritual pantry. Then decide what you need to discard and what you need to stock up on.

Once again my journey through the Old Testament has proven to be insightful and relevant. It is I Samuel this time. In chapter 8, the elders of Israel, on behalf of the people, demanded Samuel give them a king, like all the other nations had, though they buffered their rationale with the fact that Samuel was old and his sons were not following God.



However, they forgot one very important detail. God was already their king. But God allowed them to have a king and told Samuel that “it is not you they have rejected, but they have rejected me . . .” (I Samuel 8:7).

Don’t get me wrong, Israel had a government and leadership: they had elders; they had prophets; and they ultimately had a king––God. But they chose to put their faith somewhere else. And as Samuel warns, a king will “Take . . . their sons . . . their daughters . . . their fields . . . their flocks” for his own purposes.

Even so, God gives them an out. In Samuel 12:14, Samuel tells them that “If you fear the Lord and serve and obey him and do not rebel against his commands, and if both you and the king who reigns over you follow the Lord your God—good!” But if they didn’t––God’s hand would be against them.

Our government (the United States) is built upon the Constitution and based on the desires of the people. As one can see by its Preamble it’s intent is noble:

We the People of the United States, in Order to form a more perfect Union, establish Justice, insure domestic Tranquility, provide for the common defence, promote the general Welfare, and secure the Blessings of Liberty to ourselves and our Posterity, do ordain and establish this Constitution for the United States of America.

And yet since its inception, twenty-seven amendments have been made to it, suggesting that perfection has yet to be achieved.

Likewise, we have just finished another election cycle, a time when we cast our votes and put much of our hope into one man to lead us into safety and prosperity.

But we need to remember, whether we are elated or deflated by the results, that a man or a man-made institution is at its core flawed, and can only take us so far. Our faith and trust must remain in God and God alone. And, as we saw in I Samuel, diverting that faith and trust to a person or institution can be both dangerous and destructive.

May we always remain steadfast to God and pray for our leaders that they, too, may be God-fearing and honoring, and therefore allow God to “bless America.”