Author: Jon Gauger

How many times a day do you reach for your phone? Surveys suggest we grab our phones between 144 and 205 times every day. In one study, 57%—more than half of all Americans—admitted they were addicted to their phones. While 54% of smartphone users report feeling more informed, 54% also report a sense of eye strain from all that screen time. 50% concede that checking in with their phones makes them less productive. Another 43% admit their phones cause them to struggle to pay attention. 30% say their phone use leads to anxiety. And 21% report all that phone time…

Americans are starving—not so much for food, but for fame. Driven by fads and fueled by social media, we are desperately trying to “be somebody.” The Inaugural Success Index study found that 92% of respondents believed fame and fortune come closer to society's definition of success. In a Pew Research survey, analysts discovered that among 18–25-year-olds, even getting rich is less important than becoming famous. After surveying a group of 1,032 sixteen-year-olds, a team of UK researchers determined that more than half had no desire to go into professions that didn’t involve being a celebrity. But believers are different. Way…

There’s big. There’s huge. Then there’s ridiculously massive. I refer to the teddy bear Tim bought for his two girls, Ava and Emma. Once home, the bear was an immediate hit: a friend at play, a guest at dinner, and a comfort at bedtime. It was also too big for their home, and just couldn't stay. But how to break the news to the girls? Tim took a wise approach and assured the girls that the bear was simply relocating to his office. Better yet, they could stop by to visit whenever they wanted to. With a reluctance recalling the…

A sliver of trees. Barely enough to be called a forest preserve. But big enough that it stands out from the cement and asphalt landscape you see peering out the windows of your train chugging toward Chicago. Because God has wired me to worship Him through His creation, I raise a hand and praise Him silently for the trees every time we roll by the splendor of this green scene. God must like it because He seems to jog my attention whenever I'm on the train and about to miss His handiwork. On a recent ride, I gazed into that…

I do not know whether this is a great or grim day for you. Either way, I invite you to ponder with me three things for which every believer can be thankful: #1 You have breath to praise. Not to be a downer, but the day is coming when you and I won't be able to praise because we will have taken our last breath. Psalm 115:17,18 soberly reminds us, "The dead do not praise the LORD, nor do any who go down into silence. But as for us, we will bless the LORD from this time and forever. Praise…

Be careful how you conduct yourself. Others are watching. As a seventeen-year-old kid, I had never lived away from home. But there I was, nervously pacing back and forth in the freshman registration line at Moody Bible Institute. Finances for that fall semester in order (thanks, Dad and Mom), I loaded my few belongings into the Culbertson Hall elevator and punched the tenth-floor button. That’s when I met my roommate, Dave. In some ways, we were total opposites. He was a car junkie—but I didn’t even own a junker. He loved auto racing while I played the French Horn. He…

Exactly 80 years ago, the newly constructed USS Orleck first splashed into the water. Too late to see action in World War II, the 390-foot-long destroyer played critical roles in the conflicts that followed. In the Korean War, the Orleck made history by engaging a North Korean train laden with supplies intended to destroy our soldiers. Under total silence at night and without lights, the Orleck stealthily crept within firing range. Cloaked in darkness, the unsuspecting train chugged down the track only to be decimated by the U.S.S. Orleck's guns—earning the vessel a charter membership in the "Royal Order of…

The wheels in her mind were whirling so intently you could almost hear the clicking of the gears. Emma's eyes fixated on a panel of faces at our local Wal-Mart. “Who are these people?” the five-year-old questioned, jabbing a finger at the wall. My wife, Diana, explained that these were children who were missing from home. "But why?" came the inevitable follow-up. "Why aren't they at home? What happened?" As we nudged our cart past the wall, Diana did her best to clarify the situation. "Some of these children ran away, but many of them were taken by someone else."…

Even if you love winter, it comes at a high price. Living in one of the cold states, you see the color palette narrow dramatically to a few shades of tan or brown and not much else. Now, I can live without the bombastic reds, yellows, and pinks that come with spring and summer. But the near-total disappearance of green is a loss I do not take lightly. So, imagine my delight when a recent morning walk on a favorite trail revealed an unexpected tuft of green. Green, in the middle of winter! Did you know that the human eye…

I despise parking meters. It’s bad enough that you must sometimes “fight” to find a parking spot. But to then be forced to pay for it? That's like chewing chalk. Not only do you have to pay to park at the train station in our town, but the meters are also often broken! A trio of them stand in tight formation, metallic sentries outside the station’s doors. Yet if soldiers, they are a wounded platoon. One often struggles to take dollar bills. Another’s credit card reader is usually inoperative. And typically, at least one of them will not take quarters….