Articles

Several years ago, for the first time in 45 years, I found myself living alone, longing for relief from feelings of isolation. Sensing my need, friends asked me to visit them, which led to the purchase of a vacant, unique Craftsman-style house in need of restoration.

What is the composer, God, expressing in each individual? It’s not physicality, a personality, or inharmony. We are spiritual. We are God’s song. 

As she faces tax issues with a family business, the thought comes to this author that the men and women in Congress, as well as their staff members, sometimes write laws and regulations with good intentions, but without realizing the unintended consequences of their actions on some people and businesses. 

If astronauts were asked what keeps them and their space capsule in orbit around the Earth, they would likely reply that it’s a combination of gravity and velocity. And if asked whether they could see gravity, they would surely answer “No.

More than a year ago, I had an interview at a consulate in my hometown for the purpose of getting a visa for an overseas trip. After my visa application was approved, I was told to go back to the consulate the following week with my letter of approval in order to retrieve my passport and visa.

In many parts of the world, relations among countries, societies, and families seem to be characterized by division. Polarizing theories and opinions attempt to influence our perceptions and our relations to others on the assumption that there are two sides—and that we must choose one.

The Book of Acts records that after the stoning of Stephen, who was one of the early Christians, a great persecution arose against the young Christian church in Jerusalem, and most believers scattered throughout the region, fleeing for their lives (see Acts 8:1 ). Regardless of this crisis, Acts continues with accounts of these followers of Christ Jesus sharing their new faith, making new disciples, and sowing the seeds of new churches wherever they went.

Once on a flight, I was reading a book on my iPad and got a notification that someone was trying to share a picture with me. Since I didn’t know anyone else on the flight, I assumed it was a mistake and declined the request.

This term usually reminds me of sports. Athletes often refer to being “in the zone” when they are so mentally focused on what they are doing that they, for example, break a record in track, hit a home run or pitch a shutout in baseball, or achieve a personal best score during a figure skating competition.

I remember the first time I washed feet. In my early teens, I’d been asked to help take care of my grandma whom I was living with at the time.