He lives within my heart
It was Easter Sunday in 1932 and Alfred Ackley, a Presbyterian minister, evangelist and musician living in Escondido, California, was bothered by a recent...
Radical obedience
On Dec. 8, 2024, seven young adults shared their testimony, stepped into a livestock tank on the sanctuary stage and were baptized by the...
Being a church for all generations
One recent Sunday morning as I looked around the church sanctuary, I realized that while the congregation wasn’t large, it included seven generations, from...
Pray for all people
“I urge, then, first of all, that petitions, prayer, intercession and thanksgiving be made for all people—for kings and all those in authority, that...
The end of the story
When our oldest daughter was a preschooler, she liked to “preach.” Her version of preaching was standing on a small bench and retelling the...
Ordinary people
The first week of April, as this issue was being finalized, my father unexpectedly entered hospice and instead of living weeks, he lived days....
A pinch of salt
While making a cheesecake for Valentine’s Day, I was surprised that the recipe called for 1/8 teaspoon of salt. Why salt, since it was...
Always winter
This past Christmas season, one of the Advent sermons at my church touched on the time between the Old and New Testaments, sometimes called...