God chooses who he inspires…

____________________________________ How churches treat women is indicative of their commitment to or aversion to hierarchy and power My mom never second-guessed the expectation that she would be a housewife. She thrived in that role and seemed to love every minute of...

Finding Christmas.

Apparently, I’ve never shied away from drawing attention to myself. _________________ I became famous in 1969. The Ponca City News published a picture of me in my homemade Santa costume which I proudly wore for the annual main street “Holiday Pet Parade.”...

The invisible are all around us…

__________________________________________ Every year Parents Left Behind offers a seminar for grieving parents.  Many of these parents grieve alone and are easily forgotten.  Jesus sees them.   They pulled her out of her adultery bed and tried to kill her. While...

Our personal worldviews can be…comfy

_______________________________________ A key part of a vibrant Christian life is the willingness to see others empathetically. My grandparents enjoyed hereditary wealth from eastern Mississippi timber. They had a lovely hilltop home surrounded by fat, shiny cows....

The Bible as a Sex Handbook?

In a climate of overwhelming questions about sexuality and gender, it’s important to know that the Bible has an entire book devoted to healthy desire and sex.  This was my FaithMatters column on March 23, 2024....

To the Christians in Palestine

Israel’s status changed the day tongue-shaped fire danced on the apostles… ______________________ I was at a party when I was in graduate school. I found myself at the hors d’ oeuvres table chatting with a man who was on campus for a conference. He was the...