He Walked Away Crushed

Several years ago, my second son, Steve, tried out for the high school football team. One day he walked into my office and proclaimed with great excitement, ...

Friends Light the Way

No problem is ever as dark when you have a friend to face it with you.

Constructive Criticism

"Criticism," said Ralph Waldo Emerson, "should not be querulous and wasting, all knife and root-puller, but guiding, instructive, inspiring--a ...

Cheering for Church

Like a victorious locker room, church is a place to exult, to give thanks, to celebrate the great news that all is forgiven, that God is love, that victory ...

He's My Shepherd

For more than fifty years, my father was a pastor and conducted numerous funerals. I particularly remember the tragic death and funeral of my best friend's ...

How to Be a Friend

Often the most loving thing we can do when a friend is in pain is to share the pain--to be there even when we have nothing to offer except our presence ...

In Support of Dreamers

The Tyranny of the Rigid

On May 24, 1965, a thirteen-and-a-half-foot boat quietly slipped out of the marina at Falmouth, Massachusetts. Its destination? ...

Being the Comforter

One of our missionary kids was at boarding school, far away from her parents. She was a fifth grader, Heidi by name. And she wrote home to her parents: ...

Fellow Thinkers

Without doubt, Lewis's creative and theological genius was stimulated by his weekly meetings with the "Inklings," a collection of thinkers ...

Barnabas, Advocate for the Despised

"Barnabas" was actually his nickname, given him by the apostles. It meant "Son of Encouragement," and it was most appropriate.

He was ...