Family
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But Do You Like Each Other?
One thing Leah and I have been talking about a lot the last few months is a trip we took back in the summer, and a realization we made on that trip. For our 25th anniversary, we took a few days and traveled together. It was a great time. We saw a lot of sites and ate some wonderful food. We also just enjoyed downtime. As the trip wore on, though, one thing we both said was that the trip reminded us that we like each other. Notice that sentence didn’t say that we “love” each other. We already knew that. That’s non-negotiable! But I’m concerned that a lot of…
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A Beautiful Marriage
After more than fifty-four years of marriage, it only makes sense that we did something right in selecting a mate for life. Now, granted, I have known several people who have remained married for many years who really don’t seem to like each other, but remain married for a variety of reasons. This, however, is not usually the norm in marriages with longevity. Sadly, in today’s world people spend more time looking at the outside of a person and make that their deciding factor in whether or not they want to spend time with them. And even more sadly, they often use those people for their own gratification. This is…
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A Lesson Learned from Teaching the Song of Solomon
I’m only a couple of weeks away from finishing teaching a Bible class on the Song of Solomon. This is actually the second time I have taught through that book, and, while challenging, it is a joy. Since the book is quite short, we are able to throw in a few “special studies” on marriage, but they all come from the concepts found in that great love poem. Overall, though, the vast majority of the class is just going through the poem and being encouraged by what is there. It is interesting to me that, while Song of Solomon is “famous” for its very descriptive language, that part of the…
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A Time for Rest
Over the course of our 54 years of marriage, Jim and I have done a good bit of traveling. Some of it has been for work purposes (gospel meetings, ladies’ days, seminars, and lectureships), but some of it has been for vacation and relaxation. When our children were young we tried to take them to places that would be fun but also educational. Usually, these were not very relaxing trips. As we have gotten older and don’t go as much, we try to find places that will not only be beautiful, but also relaxing. We’ve traveled in almost every direction from our home in Paducah, Kentucky, and we have always enjoyed…
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Who’s to Blame?
I want to share with you something that I found to be interesting and challenging at the same time. Along with that, it is also a very good reason for self-examination. I listened to a podcast during which a father had a conversation with his adult son. The subject most discussed during the conversation/interview was the son’s addiction to drugs and alcohol. Fortunately, he has been “clean” now for a number of years. What interested me was the motivating factor that led to his recovery. The discussion turned to the idea that people need to “hit bottom” before they can turn things around. It surprised me to learn that the…
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The World Has Our Kids Because…
It has been a long time since I was a full-time youth minister. Since then, though, one of the joys of my life has been that, at each of the three congregations for which I have preached–Lebanon Road, 9th Avenue, and Central–the elders have specifically told me that they would like me to have a part in helping with the youth program. What fascinates me a great deal of the time is how little has changed. Oh sure, there have been technological changes and other things like that, but people are people and, just like Solomon wrote, “There is nothing new under the sun.” Tragically, one of the things that…
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It Was Only a Nickel
When I was growing up as a little girl, we lived next door to my paternal grandparents. Those were much simpler times and life seemed easier. We lived within one block of a small ice cream stand that could actually be seen from my grandparent’s porch. A small ice cream cone cost 5 cents – one nickel! (I know some of you are thinking of just how old I am!) On one particularly hot summer day, my grandpa was sitting out on the front porch and I decided to ask him if I could have a nickel to get an ice cream cone. He reached into his pocket and held…
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Stop Calling God’s Handiwork Ugly
There are so many beautiful things in this world. God has blessed us with a universe and a world filled with sights that are pretty, and many that will take your breath away. Maybe you have been blessed to visit some of the more famous ones; the Blue Ridge Mountains or the Redwood Forest. Or maybe you have simply looked up into a night sky and been in awe at the wonder of the stars. It is not uncommon at all for people to take pictures of these sights, post them on social media, and give God the credit for the wonder and beauty of it all. And rightly so!…
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Farewell — Goodbye
As far as I know, I’m not planning to take any extended trips anytime soon. I am also not planning on this being my last post on A Legacy of Faith. Since only God knows the future, I was careful to use the word “planning” in those statements. I’m sure that you can think along with me of at least a couple of places in the Bible which deal with the mistakes made by people who are totally confident about their futures. It is interesting to me that the two passages that came immediately to my mind–Luke 12:16-20 and James 4:13-17–concern people who saw for themselves a bright future. I…
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What Would a Song and a Rainbow Have to Do with Parenting?
Some who read this will know (or at least know of) Lance Cordle. I became acquainted with him when Donna and I moved to western Kentucky almost thirty years ago. Lance had already been preaching for the church of Christ in Calvert City, Kentucky for about seven years then and continued to do so until about a year ago. My brother and very good friend is now preaching in Atwood, Tennessee. In the “you can’t make this stuff up department,” Atwood is where he moved from when he moved to Calvert City all those years ago. I look forward each week to getting the church bulletin “The Atwood Ambassador” online…
