Here’s something else I learned at the family reunion. I’m an American mutt.That phrase isn’t original with me. I heard it quite a few years ago while listening to an NPR interview where one woman, describing her family background, called herself “an American mutt.” She then explained by saying, “You know, a litt…
Over the weekend we attended a cousins reunion of the Pritchard-Mayfield family in Oxford, Mississippi. The cousins part meant that my generation planned and sponsored the event. We managed to get all the cousins in our branch of the family tree together for the first time in 20 years. It occurred to me after it was over that I had learn…
A few months ago I got a call from Broadman and Holman Publishers asking if they could use my book on Elijah as part of their Masterwork adult Sunday School curriculum. I told them it was fine with me, and that was the last I heard of it until a few days ago when I got an email from a pastor saying that his church was going to be going through the …
Maybe you shouldn’t have changed jobs.Maybe you shouldn’t have bought that new house.Maybe you shouldn’t have moved to a new city.Maybe you shouldn’t have taken that big promotion.What do you do then? It’s always easy to look back and criticize yourself for the decisions you made years ago. We’ve all done our sha…
Yesterday I ran across this little story in an interview with art collector Charles Saatchi. The final question was “Is bad luck often a case of stupidity?” Here’s Saatchi’s answer:In New York in 1977, a man was knocked down by a car, and got up uninjured.But a bystander suggested he feign injury, lay back down in front of t…
I received a note from a friend who has just started a new business. Like all new ventures, it will require of my friend and his wife a large commitment of time, energy and personal resources. But at the same time, my friend feels called to serve his church by discipling others and doing some occasional preaching. Is there a conflict here? Does he …
Recently two authors have written important books with the word “radical” in their titles. I was struck by this seeming coincidence as I read them more or less together. The first book is The Radical Disciple by John Stott. For many years he served as rector of All Souls Church in London. There under God he built a thriving church in th…
This beautiful video begins with the story behind Horatio Spafford’s famous song, “It Is Well With My Soul.” Enjoy the story and the song. I hope it prepares your heart to worship the Lord. After the shipwreck that led to the writing of the song, the Spaffords moved to Jerusalem where they founded the American Colony. Today at the…
I saw this church sign while riding my bike a few days ago. When I saw it a second time, it set me to thinking.I think it’s the word “fond” that grabbed me. Am I “fond” of my own will?Yeah, sure, absolutely.I have a few things on my mind as I type these words, including one thing regarding someone dear to me. I do inde…
“Thank you so very much for all the encouraging sermons over the years. My husband and I were missionaries in the Middle East for 16 years.”