Cause and effect is something we work on quite a bit in elementary English and Language Arts. What may seem rather obvious to those of us who are older can sometimes trip up young readers. Because of the different construction options for these scenarios, they need to be reminded to always think about what happened first: the cause.  For instance, “I studied hard and got good grades so I graduated” has the same meaning and cause as “I graduated because I studied hard and got good grades.” Even though they are said in reverse order, a careful reader understands which must happen first.  Why do we know that in our…

Those who are somewhat familiar with the Bible have heard sermons and lessons about the encounter that a man who then was known as Saul had with Jesus. The events are recorded in the ninth chapter of Acts.  As you may remember, Saul (later known as Paul) was on his way to Damascus when a very bright light appeared. Some preachers (I suppose in an attempt to add some drama to the Biblical account) have informed their listeners that the light was so bright that it knocked Saul off of his horse and onto the ground. While the text says that Saul did indeed fall to the ground, there is…

The phrase “echo chamber” has become commonly used in our culture. Due to the multiplicity of ways we can receive news and information, people often just gravitate toward outlets that reaffirm what they already believe. Thus, an “echo chamber,” because it is just repeating what they already believe. People will just read or watch news from a channel that has a leaning toward their side. They will listen to podcasts that state what they already believe. They will watch YouTubers who reaffirm what they want to hear. And, scarcely if ever will they truly listen to the other side. In fact, the only thing they hear about the other side…

This post is being released after Independence Day passed earlier in the week. That date is very important for America and it is always encouraging to see people celebrate it by hanging a flag or posting something patriotic on social media. However, July 4 was not the end of the Revolutionary War. While it is a very important date, the battles in that war continued to be fought for quite some time. It would not be for a long while until the British finally surrendered and America truly had her freedom. They could not just declare that they were independent, they had to fight for it. It is also true…

Since the television game show, Jeopardy, is basically a televised trivia game, I thought that I would begin this with a little trivia. I’m old enough to remember that there was a host on the show before Alex Trebek.  Art Fleming was the man’s name. I remember seeing him on my parents’ old black and white television. I also listened to him occasionally toward the end of his career as a broadcaster on KMOX radio in St. Louis. About the only time I see the program now is when it is on in some waiting room, restaurant, hospital room in which I am visiting, etc. Since I’m not a regular viewer,…

As this is being published, we are nearing the end of VBS 2023. Months of preparation pays off in a week that always seems to fly by. The amount of prayer, planning, and work that it takes to make a Vacation Bible School a success is tremendous. For many churches, though, VBS is just a “thing” they do because they have always done it. While it takes a lot of effort, it just kind of happens and then is forgotten until a few weeks or so before that usual time slot on the calendar starts drawing near the next year. But even then, there can be excitement that comes when…

Recently, millions of people were probably watching at least a portion of all of the pageantry that was involved in the coronation of the new monarch of the United Kingdom (and 14 other Commonwealth realms). It is sort of interesting for me to watch a person who is only a couple of months or so younger than I am starting a new career! When I began thinking about this post, I thought about trying to list all of the titles that King Charles III now has. I finally gave up. I was unable to separate official titles from other designations. I do remember, though, that there was some concern before he…