A Word With You

How did we know it was a stupid question? Our family was in Alaska some years ago and we asked some of the folks there what seemed like a reasonable question, "Where can we go to see a moose?" Turns out seeing a moose is really no big deal in Alaska. In fact, some people we talked to had hit one recently! So, they're everywhere. Sure. While I was busy speaking, my wife and kids drove all over the...

There's something invigorating about being the first one out and around in the morning; you sort of feel like the conqueror of your environment. Like when you're the first one out exercising in those first hours of the new day. I had that feeling one morning as I went out for my fitness walk. I really like to walk when I'm away from home, too. And I was in a setting where right behind me there was...

She was one of the most admired women in the world - Mother Teresa, that angelic woman who devoted her life to the least of the least in the slums of Calcutta, India. The world's greatest leaders wanted to meet her and to experience her love and her moral authority. And actually, she was just a diminutive woman who made such a difference in the world. Some years ago, a young man wrote a letter to...

I don't think it's that I'm incompetent when it comes to technical things. I think I was just born a hundred years too late. I probably would have fared better when they hadn't invented so many machines and appliances, and computers. I would have done fine in those simpler days. I mean sometimes it is just so embarrassing. I can't, you know, get a lamp to work, or I can't get some appliance to wor...

For a long time, I have been fascinated with the story of the Titanic. The sinking of that seemingly “unsinkable” ship after a collision with an iceberg is filled with so much human drama that has inspired endless movies, books, and documentaries. Finding the Titanic at the bottom of the Atlantic fueled even greater information than ever before. Some of the drama of those discoveries has been with...

Now, I’m not in the business of advertising any particular ice cream spot, but let’s face it, it’s kind of fun to go to Baskin Robbins. You know, they have all those flavors they advertise. Now, you can write to me and tell me that maybe you like another place better, but listen, I know you like to go where there’s a lot of flavors. And you know what? It seems like it takes me an hour to decide wh...

When our oldest child was born, they didn’t even let fathers go into the labor room. That was nice. Then when our second one was born, fathers must have gotten a little smarter. They let us go into the labor room, but not the delivery room. And by the time our third one was born, hey, fathers had really gotten smart! I was actively involved with the doctor in the delivery. But, of course, I couldn...

I've only been to Israel once, and just for a short visit, but I will never forget the thrill of seeing those places where Jesus walked when He was there, and watching all those names and places in the Bible suddenly come alive. It really was one of the highlights of my life, except for one thing. I went alone, on my way back home from a ministry trip to Africa. As I stood on the Mount of Olives,...

There were a lot of dramatic images from the military action known as Operation Iraqi Freedom - but I think few were more dramatic than the middle-of-the-night rescue of a prisoner of war, Jessica Lynch. If you were around at the time, you probably remember it. As Coalition forces advanced quickly from the Kuwaiti border to the capital of Baghdad, Pfc. Lynch's unit of Army maintenance troops made...

There's nothing more discouraging for the family chef than these three words, "I'm not hungry." Maybe you've faced those words. You know, kids have impatient stomachs. Of course, only kids. We don't, right, adults? But kids have impatient stomachs, so they eat whenever the urge hits and whatever the urge tells them to eat. And, of course, I'm sure our kids were like yours. They would usually go to...

Because we've spent so much time on Indian reservations over the years, the story I heard about one little Native American boy is especially meaningful to me. He lived with his mom in a little hut on a reservation in the Southwest. His dad had died, and that meant the boy had to take responsibility for their sheep at a pretty young age. One day a missionary passed through their village and he expl...

I imagine it's been a little while since you've asked somebody, "How's your liver today?" I never thought about it until my wife got sick. She had hepatitis, and for many months I learned how vital the liver is; never thought about it before. It's the filtration plant of your body. We've got all kinds of toxic materials pumping into us every day in medicines that we take, and foods that we eat, an...

"Moon joy." That's what the Artemis commander called the crew's lunar euphoria as they approached the moon. And that was just the beginning. For all their science, for all their simulations, they were almost at a loss for words. The view behind the moon and seeing the Earth left them in awe. And to think - they were looking at one little blue marble in one galaxy. In what is estimated now to be tw...

Certain birthdays are like, you know, special milestones. Every birthday is a milestone, but take 40 for example. For some reason, we sort of enshrine that particular one as a special marking place in your life. And I remember when my wife had her 40th birthday. I'm not going to tell you when that was, but she handled it very well. I mean, she was so cool about it; it was no big deal. I hope when...

Think about what you looked like in seventh grade. You say, “Oh, no! Please, I’d rather not.” Are you thinking, "Man, what a hunk I was! What a Miss America!” Probably not. Our daughter had a funny experience in her senior French class in high school. There was some down time and some girls were comparing their wallet pictures, including our daughter. She had her senior picture and she also had he...

There are few words that strike fear into the heart of a student like the word “test.” Now, I’m informed that some are to be feared more than others. For example, an essay test is a 10 on the anxiety scale. You have to know your stuff. True and false, well, that’s not as bad. And multiple choice, oh man, that seems to be especially popular among students. See, there’s the right answer right in fro...

Rwanda – It was the centerpiece of a lot of news attention back in 1994. Bloody civil war; tens of thousands of Rwandans were slaughtered there. There were nightly images of emaciated refugees, dying of disease, dying of starvation. And children; oh, you just couldn’t forget the children. Many of those kids had lost everything in the carnage.  Billy Graham’s son, Franklin Graham, took a medic...

The great Bible teacher, Dr. Harry Ironside, used to tell a story about a man who lived in a small country town in England. One day, he went to London where he would need to stay for several days. He was glad to be there on a Sunday because that gave him an opportunity to hear some of the great preachers of his day. He wrote home to his wife, and he said: “Last Sunday morning I went to hear Dr. Cr...

We kept two special remembrances of our wedding. One was a piece of wedding cake that we froze; the other was a recording of the ceremony. The recording was a much better idea than the cake. We ate the cake on our first wedding anniversary. You've heard of chocolate cake; this was more like chalk cake. But oh, the recording, now that was a great idea. In fact, often on our wedding anniversary we h...

We have one of our staff who has a pretty regular assignment. That is, show up at the post office every morning. Yeah. The one who goes there is a pretty familiar figure. They know about what time to expect our person to come in, and they know it's important. See, the orders are, "Don't stop at the office. Do not pass go. Do not collect $200. Go straight to our post office box." See, that daily tr...

April 3, 2026 Write your description her Twenty-three marks on the wall of his four-by-four prison cell told the story. It had just been three weeks since the soldiers captured him - the number one name on the Most Wanted List - at a local bar and they hauled him into this cell. The charges were robbery, treason, and murder. Day 23 was going to be just another day there, or so he thought until he...

April 2, 2026 When we finally graduate from childhood to grownup hood, we trade in some simple games for some complicated games. You know, once you get bigger, you have to learn all the rules of football, baseball, and basketball. And they can get pretty complicated. But I remember some of those uncomplicated games I played when I was little, like dive bomber. Yeah, simple rules. All you had to do...

April 1, 2026 If you don't know how to swim, it's not cool to let your friends know that, right? Well, let me tell you, it's just not smart not to tell them, especially if you're going into the lake with them to swim. The scene was Lake Michigan. This ten-year-old boy was me. I couldn't swim and I was too proud to tell my friends. Suddenly, as I waded deeper and deeper, I lost my footing and I beg...

Allison and her daughter and two friends were out for a trail ride in a remote area. They were to rendezvous later, actually, in the afternoon with other family members at their overnight campsite. When it came time to head back, they were somewhere on the side of a mountain, picking their way through very rocky ground. No matter which way they went, they couldn't find the main trail that would ta...

You know, most of us have heard words like this when we're going through a hard time, "Oh, I understand how you feel." Maybe you have muttered under your breath, "You have no idea." One situation in which those words should probably never be spoken, are a man to a woman in labor. Yeah, that's right! Now, I've been through labor with my wife three times, but I can not say I understand how she felt....