In 1984, while developing a Christmas program for his church, Mark Lowery jotted down a poem. Seven years later Buddy Greene wrote a tune, and they recorded “Mary Did You Know” for the first time. That poem emerged as Lowery pondered Mary’s role in the historic moment...

They missed the opportunity of a lifetime. A little curiosity would have led them to witness a miracle. Instead, they are characters in the Christmas story who are not part of a nativity scene. They didn’t follow the star. The magi from the east saw a star and...

Marvin Olasky is an academic, an author, and a Presbyterian.  That’s why it’s an eyebrow-raiser when he tells about his solitary mystical experience. In his book, Lament for a Father,” Olasky explains he was an atheist (and Marxist) pursuing a PhD in American Culture...

If you could go back in time and thank someone, who would you thank and for what? I posed that question in various forums. People named parents, grandparents, siblings, ministers, teachers, doctors, bosses, and neighbors.  Some stepped in to raise children when the...

Winsome Sears immigrated to the United States from Jamaica when she was six years old. That was in 1963. Her name would not have been in the 2021 headlines except for her ability to survive a searing loss that few among us must endure. Her grandmother modeled a...

Mark Zuckerberg’s new company name is Meta, meaning “beyond.” He said, “The metaverse is the next frontier just like social networking was when we got started…A lot of us will be creating and inhabiting worlds that are just as detailed and convincing as this one, on a...

British pop singer Adele says her latest album is for her nine-year-old son. She wants him to understand “who I am and why I voluntarily chose to dismantle his entire life in the pursuit of my own happiness.”  The three years making it was a “self-reflection and then...

So, Captain Kirk made a trip to space!  William Shatner struggled to express himself after his trip in the Blue Origin rocket. Moments after landing he told Jeff Bezos, “Unbelievable. The covering of blue…it’s so thin, and you’re through it in a moment. What you see...

Young people dream of being rich, and rich people dream of being young. That would explain why Amazon’s Jeff Bezos and other billionaires are investing in startups like Altos Labs and Calico Labs. These labs research how humans can live longer, even indefinitely. They...

On the anniversary of Supreme Court Justice Ruth Ginsberg’s death, the ACLU tweeted a quote by her. The judge’s 1993 statement was “dated,” so the tweeter edited the engendered words and pronouns. A New York Times columnist complained, “It was somewhat Orwellian to...

I followed with great interest the plight of 15,000 Haitian migrants camped under a bridge in Del Rio, Texas. Living in their country for two years, I saw firsthand the wretched economic conditions and the desperation. Illegal immigration is a political flashpoint,...

I thought Little Ricky on the “I Love Lucy” show was the son of Lucille Ball and Desi Arnaz. Not true. His name is Keith Thibodeaux. Keith’s life almost became a far worse Hollywood tragedy than mistaken identity. Arnaz selected him for the popular show in 1955...

I admire Peter Boghossian.  The atheist professor refused to be muzzled and resigned from Portland State University. He couldn’t continue teaching critical thinking and ethics due to university policies.  He said, "Students are not being taught to think. Rather, they...

The nip in the air and the Labor Day weekend signal a new football season. Hope springs eternal for sports fans. For some it’s a fun game, but others look for a psychological boost from their team’s wins. The new season is their window of hope. This year, Tim Tebow...

God help us. That’s a prayer, not a swear. How often those words escape our lips upon hearing news of Afghanistan, COVID, and American politics. You do remember He already has helped, right? You have to remember that to keep your sanity. God’s people wanted to...

Filmmaker Michael Moore weighed in on the Taliban takeover in Afghanistan. “They’re religious nuts, but we’ve got those here too. Their Taliban, our Taliban, everybody’s got a Taliban.” His worldview sees no difference between Christians and Taliban. The Taliban...

A walk-off, game-ending home run is not uncommon in major league baseball. But this was unique because it happened in an Iowa cornfield. On Aug. 12, the Yankees and White Sox played the unique game near the movie set of “Field of Dreams” (1989). In the movie, Kevin...

I attended a conference once, where one of the speakers mentioned the name Mo Anderson. A wave of admiration swept the cavernous hall. I didn’t know her. The folks at Keller Williams Realty do. In 1972, the former music teacher earned her real estate license. Two...

“I am an attorney and would like to speak to you.”  Those can be ominous words, but it was actually a request for help. Please allow a biographical note. I received a theological education after becoming a licensed civil engineer. My area of expertise is stormwater....

Guo Gangtang suffered a father’s worst nightmare. In 1997, his 2-year-old son was abducted. A 2015 movie, “Lost and Love,” documents the Chinese man’s epic search for his son. He traversed most of China handing out flyers and proclaiming his cause. He wore out 10...

Jane Blasio’s search for her birth parents led her to discover a dark secret. Soon the newspapers picked up the story, and the whole world knew. In 1997, Blasio discovered that Dr. Thomas Hicks had arranged for as many as 200 illegal adoptions during the 1960’s and...

If you do not identify as a Christian, have you ever thought about why you don’t? Perhaps you haven’t thought about it at all. Please let me help you with that. Maybe you’re like the non-believer who responded on social media to the disconcerting things happening...

The recent fireworks and our celebration of Independence Day has me dwelling on the state of affairs in America. Not current events, but the state of our thinking about the underpinnings of our freedoms. Here’s my hypothesis: Christianity can exist without freedom,...

At the end of the Revolutionary War, George Washington’s desire was to retire to his estate on the Potomac River.  I can see why. Mount Vernon is situated on a picturesque and productive land, quite suitable for a retired soldier and gentleman farmer. In his 1783...

I sat alone on the sidewalk outside the Port-au-Prince airport. My first trip abroad and I was stranded. I didn’t speak the language. Cell phones didn’t exist. No one answered the telephone number I had. Four hours earlier when my ride hadn’t appeared, a friendly...

Fear is part of the human experience. It motivates us to act in ways that in hindsight we wish we hadn’t. It’s even worse if it reveals something important is lacking. The word “fear” appears almost 400 times in the Bible, describing a range of human situations. In...

George Muller (1805–1898) cared for over 10,000 orphans during his lifetime. He was a father to the fatherless because he saw his Heavenly Father answer prayer. The plight of the orphan was a recurring theme for Charles Dickens (think Oliver Twist). He was so...

“I am the vine, you are the branches; he who abides in Me and I in him, he bears much fruit, for apart from Me you can do nothing.”- Jesus Ahead of me in line at the post office was a young mother with a toddler. An older woman couldn’t help but chatting with the mom...

“If you were a tree, what kind of tree would you be?” Would you answer such a question? Entertainment critics hit Barbara Walters hard for asking Katharine Hepburn a similar question on the “20/20” show in 1981.  But the question wasn’t random. Context helps. Hepburn...

“He who has God and everything else has no more than he who has God only.” – C. S. Lewis How many friends or followers do you have on social media? Human nature compels you toward relationships. You want people to like your posts, know your name, and look at you when...

“Where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty” (2 Cor. 3:17). The theme for this year’s National Day of Prayer was, “Lord, pour out your love, life, and liberty.”  What an encouraging and timely prayer! President Harry Truman inaugurated the National Day of...

U.S. Senator Tim Scott spoke to the nation last month. Setting politics aside, surely you can appreciate his life story of hope and redemption. Broadcasting to a national audience on multiple platforms he said, “Growing up, I never dreamed I’d be standing here...

“Mom and apple pie.” It was a common answer from WWII soldiers when asked, “What do you miss the most?” It led to the expression, “As American as motherhood and apple pie,” a way to express a value everyone accepts. A scant 25 years after WWII, feminist Shulamith...

The Soviet Union and Eastern Bloc governments adopted May 1 as a day to celebrate communism. They intended it to recognize laborers in their socialist system. They didn’t know their governments would collapse under the weight of that system in less than 75 years....

“This increasing godlessness in America is actually a good thing, to be welcomed and embraced” (LA Times).  Professor Phil Zuckerman believes progressive secularism offers hope. He admits that religious organizations do good, “however, such welcomed charity is...

Wall Street markets were closed on Good Friday.  Their other annual religious holiday is Christmas Day.  Given the cultural trend toward a secular worldview, one wonders how long before they cancel or rename those holidays. Just in my lifetime I’ve witnessed that...

The bodily Resurrection of Jesus Christ is celebrated as a focal point of the Christian faith.  Skeptics dismiss it as a myth or metaphor. I love my non-believing friends and offer here a few of the many reasons to consider the Resurrection a historical event. I...

“Let us not love with word or with tongue, but in deed and truth. We will know by this that we are of the truth, and will assure our heart before Him” (1 Jn. 3:18-19). Kim Scott was an executive with Google and other tech companies.  She tells about hiring “Bob,” a...

“Follow the science!” is the cry of parents who have lost their patience with school districts in America yet to resume in-person learning. They have heard that the CDC has given a green light to opening schools closed by the COVID pandemic. The CDC published guidance...

I have a Peach Pass.  That means I can exit the multi-lane freeway through the toll gate and use the single lane with light traffic that skips past the notorious Atlanta congestion.  I usually experience survivor’s guilt when I see the hapless souls stuck with the...

See how great a forest is set aflame by such a small fire! And the tongue is a fire, the very world of iniquity… (It) sets on fire the course of our life, and is set on fire by hell (Jas. 3:5-6). Smith College is an elite women’s liberal arts college in...

LA Times columnist Virginia Heffernan received some pushback.  She wrote about her neighbors shoveling snow from her driveway without her asking.  She labeled what they did “aggressive kindness.” She apparently despises her neighbors because of their politics.  She...

I have found that the most inspiring use of social media is to enjoy the beauty of creation as posted by friends.  They see, they admire, they share.  Simple formula.  I have done the same. I have seen the ancient Appalachians framing horses and green pastures. ...

On a recent episode of “Real Time,” Bill Maher repeated his charge that religion is “mass delusion.”  He has suggested before that science and thinking are opposed to faith.  By framing faith as ignorant, he would convert you to his irreligion. Here’s the full quote. ...

Sometimes life reminds us to number our days.  Death does too.  It can stir you to consider what really matters. Larry King died.  He told Conan, “I don’t believe in an afterlife. I can’t, I just never accepted it.” I respect that, but it’s sad. He continued, “The...

At the presidential inauguration, country music artist Garth Brooks offered truth.  It was as though “the fragrance of the knowledge of Him in every place” had been revealed (2 Cor. 2:14). As a solo trumpet sounded the opening lines, Brooks removed his trademark...

Deion Sanders is the only athlete who has played in a World Series and a Super Bowl.  To what did that success lead him?  Attempted suicide. Sanders played in the 1992 World Series (Braves).  He is a two-time Super Bowl champion (1994-49ers; 1995-Cowboys).  Despite...

I have questions.  Strange and unusual events lead me to this basic question, how now shall we live? First, some current events questions I don’t presume to answer.  COVID emerged amid shocking warnings that it could be bad.  Are economic shutdowns and personal...

A U.S. physician became alarmed by his elderly mother’s observations.  She spoke from her experience resisting communism’s early advances and as a political prisoner in Eastern Europe.  Rod Dreher recounts the story in his book, Live Not By Lies.  Recent stories of...

Each December when World Magazine recaps the year, I turn to the list of deaths.  Reading what people did or how they died reminds me I still have time.  It also raises questions about the finite human experience. I noticed a few entries on the list.  NBA All-Star...