Samuel filled his horn with oil and made his way to Bethlehem, with thoughts swirling in his head. It wasn’t long ago he had anointed Israel’s first king. Had it really gone wrong this quickly? At first, Saul fit the bill perfectly—head and shoulders above his peers, the son of a wealthy man, a poster boy for the Israelite army. But God did not let His people get far into a monarchy before He showed them how foolish their request had been. Like a mirror held up to the nation, Saul showed Israel how quickly their hearts could be led astray. Instead of fighting battles to protect his people, the warrior king began to fight to protect his own ego. So off Samuel went to find Jesse, a father of sons.  Read More

As Peter wrote to the early church about brotherly affection and love, I wonder if he was remembering words he had heard in an upper room. He sat at the Passover table the night before Jesus’s death and was mortified by his teacher’s opening move. Jesus set aside His robes and stooped to the floor to wash His disciples’ feet. How humiliating–the greatest becoming the least. Peter didn’t understand that the dining room had just become a classroom.  Read More

If I were to pray just one prayer for our church, it would be the words of this verse. In my opinion, it covers everything we need: hearts that are (1) convinced of the love of God, and (2) gripped by the steadfastness of Christ.  Read More

Eleven years ago, when we lived in Missouri, I decided to challenge myself in recognition of my 50th birthday. I signed up for a marathon. I had been running some - 5-milers mainly, but I was nowhere near ready for a 26-mile run. I downloaded a marathon training program and followed it diligently. I read articles about running marathons and spoke to several friends who had completed this feat so that I would know what to expect. I felt ready.  Read More

I’d known him my whole life. I knew he was the youngest of three brothers. I knew where he went to church and school and who his best friends were. I knew he played guitar and lifeguarded at the pool. That he liked road trips and buffalo wings and wasn’t afraid to stand up for what was good.  Read More

The word virtue brings me back to a heavy, tan book from my childhood. On road trips to visit my grandparents in the Texas panhandle, my mother would read us stories from The Book of Virtues. It was full of fairytales and fables organized by character traits like honesty and perseverance. My brother and I would also listen to Adventures in Odyssey cassette tapes—a staple of any good Baptist home in the nineties. Each episode of the children’s radio show ended with a Bible verse, encouraging children to make wise choices. That book and those cassettes helped us survive twelve hours in a minivan, while sneaking in lessons on a virtuous life.  Read More