Thursday Thought

I heard something the other day that nearly curled my toes and curdled my milk. Some guy was relating a personal incident that he summarized with the phrase, "that's my truth." Like a noxious weed, this expression is invading the landscape of American thought. The big deal? Truth and personal experience are both treated as equals. But there's an ocean of difference between the two. Truth operates independently of experience. Experience is personal, flexible, and open to interpretation. Truth is impersonal, fixed, and not open to interpretation. Truth exists outside of opinion—yours or mine. For me to claim that water…

What are you seeking most in life? What’s the secret driving passion of your soul? The honest answer is surprisingly easy to gauge. I say real because most believers are wired to give a “Sunday School answer.” That Sunday School answer, of course, would be Jesus: He’s number one in my life, we insist. But here's a simple test to determine what you are genuinely seeking: it's the first thing you think about every morning and, likely, the last thing you think about at night. Despite our claims to love Jesus best, many of us primarily seek comfort, power, influence,…

Dressed in a powder blue paper gown, I sit crinkling on the exam table.  The doctor looks over every inch of my skin for evidence of skin cancer or pre-cancerous growths. Armed with her magnifier, she always finds something (thankfully pre-cancerous, to this point). Nothing escapes her examination! The reward for all this probing and poking and intimidation? She blasts every problem area with a can of liquid nitrogen. It's an instant burn that throbs, turns red, then oozes, then scabs over. Maybe you’ve had the same (not joyful) experience. Frankly, there is nothing about this examination that is pleasant….

The sticker stood out on that electrical switch box on the scoreboard at the football field. It said simply, "You are beautiful." My initial reaction was, What a great message! Then the cynic in me said, Wait a minute. Nobody posts anything these days online, let alone on an electrical box, without some kind of agenda. Maybe it's an internet hoax or a British rock band or PR campaign for some new product. After a brief online search, I arrived at the website, you-are-beautiful.com. There I learned that more than 5 million of these 1.5" x 2" friendly sticker reminders…

There's no way it should have been that difficult. All I was trying to do was replace our broken toilet seat. You remove two screws, pop off the old seat, and install the new one. A five-minute job—ten at the most. The first bolt came right off. The other—not so much. Rusty! More than rusted, it appeared welded. No amount of torque from my wrench or spray from my WD-40 made it budge. It was time to get serious. With a power tool, I could slice the bolt off and grind down some of the wing nut. Still no go! Finally, we…

It's the most impressive mountain range in the state of Illinois. You say there are no mountain ranges in the Land of Lincoln? Okay. So maybe I've exaggerated the peaks of rust that jut skyward near Chicago's Kedzie Avenue. Upon closer examination, the man-made mounds of steel reveal surprisingly recognizable chunks of everyday stuff. Crane-mounted magnets and hydraulic claws paw at the piles, sorting and stacking washing machines, cars, refrigerators, dryers, freezers, and more. Though I’m glad for the recycling, I’m a bit sad for myself—and you. In those piles, I see the investment of so many false hopes, not…

Our two garden boxes are nothing to brag about. But come July or August, they will produce: beans, tomatoes, onions and peppers (sweet and spicy). We have every expectation of enjoying our own organic crops.   The soil we used was pre-loaded with plant minerals. We’ve watered regularly and there’s been plenty of sun. I even yanked a couple of weeds earlier today. So there’s every reason to hope for a harvest.  The other day, in a weird warped moment, I asked myself, how would I feel if after all the work (mostly my wife’s) of planting, watering, fertilizing and weeding we got nothing for…

Harriet Miller Ellwood passed away quietly on July 16, 1910. You say you’re not familiar with Harriet? She married Isaac Ellwood, a fabulously wealthy businessman who earned his millions selling and distributing barbed wire. Diana and I visited their estate in DeKalb, Illinois—a town known for corn more than wire.  Apart from the stately home the Ellwoods built, what caught my eye was an unusual collection of, well, stuff. I refer to the lot of minerals, relics, and curiosities made by Mrs. Issac L. Elwood. Its treasures number in the hundreds and include: A flower from Lincoln’s coffin Lava from…

“I'm an electrical engineer turned Bible teacher and theologian. I hope that's not shocking.”  Fred Dickason has a twinkle in his eye and a smile on his face.  He is 94 years young—and I do mean young. He zips around his apartment complex, greeting just about everyone by name, then welcomes us into his home.  There, we record an interview for an upcoming Moody Radio broadcast. Fred's answers and reflexes are lightning-fast. We are discussing his newest book, Dangers of the Spirit World.  Though several of Fred’s books are considered classroom standards in seminaries and Christian colleges, he’s lately given…

Can you name this author?  Two clues: Clue #1: He wrote nearly 10% of the most quoted lines ever written or spoken in the English language. Clue #2: Only one other English writer is quoted more often. Who was he? William Shakespeare, of course (“a rose by any other name….parting is such sweet sorrow…”). He wrote 37 plays that total 884,429 words. By comparison, the King James Bible contains 783,137 words. If the pen is mightier than the sword, Shakespeare was among the mightiest. That’s why I was so stunned when I saw the offer from Amazon Kindle. I could…