We’ve all seen the greeting cards, or maybe read the quotes on Pinterest. You know the ones—where they encourage you to “do that act of kindness now.” The edgier ones add the phrase, “while you can.” Ralph Waldo Emerson pointed out, “You cannot do kindness too soon, for you never know how soon it will be too late." William Penn offered his sobering perspective when he wrote, "I expect to pass through life but once. If, therefore, there by any kindness I can show, or any good thing I can do to a fellow being, let me do it now,…
Get Small
When you’re four years old, you want to “be big.” Same thing when you’re forty. We want the big salary. We want the big reputation. We want the big following on social media. Curiously, the disciples were just like us—minus FaceBook. Proof? In Matthew 18 they asked Jesus, “Who will be the greatest in the kingdom of heaven?” In other words, “Who will be the big man on heaven’s campus?” Their intent was that Jesus poke a finger at one of them and declare the big winner. Instead, Jesus plopped a tot in their midst and said,…
Halloween Scar
Halloween. It scarred me forever—in a good way. I’m not talking about being freaked out by a Freddy Krueger costume (why does our culture gravitate toward such gore?). I’m talking about a lesson I learned on a neighbor’s front porch when I was a kid. That October, Dad assembled us four boys one night, and we dug up a bucket of dirt from the garden. We took it inside the kitchen and wetted it down to the consistency of mud (protective newspapers on the table, of course). Dad patted, carved, and shaped humorous faces in 3D. When the mud dried,…
Heaven on My Mind–Or Not
How much do you think about heaven? The angel, Gabriel, flew down from the celestial glories to visit a pastor as he prepared a sermon on heaven. The angel promised he would answer the pastor's single most pressing question about life in the bliss to come. So the pastor asked Gabriel if there would be golf courses in heaven, and if so, what was their condition. “Pastor, you’ll be excited to know we certainly have golf courses in heaven,” the angel smiled. “The fairways are, of course, immaculate. The scenery is agonizingly beautiful. What’s more, I looked at the schedule…
At Auschwitz
The gravel crackled underfoot, as we trudged to our next stop at Auschwitz. Here, 1,300,000 people were imprisoned between 1940 and 1945—with only 200,000 surviving. Among other displays, we stared at shoes. Hundreds of pairs—all belonging to little children who were slaughtered—composed a portrait of agony crafted in leather. We winced at the piles of women’s hair the Nazis shaved off of their victims. There were confiscated combs and pots and pans and suitcases—almost all still bearing their owners’ names. A sensation like emotional nausea clamped my stomach as I pondered the 1.1 million who were tortured, starved, shot, gassed…
Forgiveness
Two light squeezes on the trigger. Two lead bullets from the barrel. One dead brother on the ground. Now, you stand before your brother’s killer in a courtroom that has just sentenced him to ten years in prison. Given the opportunity, what would you say to the murderer? Eighteen-year-old Brant Jean experienced that moment as he locked eyes with Amber Guyger, the Dallas police officer who took the life of his older brother on September 6, 2018. At the sentencing, Brant seized a moment to address his brother's killer. What would you have said? Angry words? Raging words? No…
Evil
I spent a rare evening watching TV the other night. As networks do, they promoted the living daylights out of their fall lineup. At the top of the heap: “Television’s number one new drama, ‘Evil.’” So successful is their search engine optimization, that if you Google “Evil,” at the top of the list is this "American drama series." As if evil itself were a distinctly American value or cultural distinctive. Or is that actually the truth? 93% of Google users like this new TV show and Rotten Tomatoes gives it a respectable rating of 81%. One reviewer describes it as…
Have to Make a Decision
When a five-year-old gets saved, does she turn from a life of sin and embrace radical change? Lucy has. At this summer's Vacation Bible School, Lucy received Christ as her Savior. She understood the definition of sin—and her guilt. She understood that only by receiving Christ's offer of forgiveness purchased by His death on the cross could she become a child of God. Lucy’s mother says there is now a marked difference in Lucy’s conduct. So much so, there is no way to account for such a radical turn-for-the-best other than this little child’s decision to receive Jesus. The other…
Most Important Thing About You
It’s not every day you get asked to shoot photos of an NFL star. But it happened this week when former running back Matt Forte visited Moody Radio’s studios for an interview. At age 32, Matt is still tall, still buff, and—frankly—an intimidating presence. Chicago fans easily remember watching him blasting through tacklers, spinning past brute defenders, and carrying the Bears’ offense—game after game (9,796 career yards). No matter how you look at him, Matt Forte is impressive. While most running backs last less than three seasons, Matt played ten. And two of those seasons, he was elected to the…
Of Insects and Iniquities
When Africans visit the USA, I wonder what stands out to them. What makes them scratch their heads and say, “Why?” As for what makes this American scratch his head while visiting Africa, that I can answer in one word: insects. Ten trips to the vast expanse called Africa have done nothing to dampen my love and admiration for this massive continent. But frankly, I do wonder about the bugs. I’ve come across insects so bulbous and so massive, their wingspans appear to rival small aircraft (well, almost that big). Indeed, Africa’s flying insects are an air force unto themselves. …