The “Resurrection Report” ~ What It Means to Both Sides

Posted on April 20, 2019 by

The impact of Biblical issues that we have heard so often, and always in the same context, can be diminished because they’re so familiar . . . even those issues associated with our Easter celebrations. For that reason, seeing them in a different context can spark a refreshing renewal of interest. That’s not to suggest that our personal interpretation of God’s truth is never wise, nor should it be subjected to the transient vicissitudes of current circumstances, but sometimes issues that have captured the attention of the popular culture can provide one of those stimulating, fresh perspectives.

The recent release of the politically volatile “Mueller Report,” which has consumed the oxygen in every newsroom in America for days now, might serve as an example. Continue reading →

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Where’s the Triumph?

Posted on April 13, 2019 by

We begin “Holy Week” by celebrating an event many refer to as Jesus’ “Triumphal Entry.” In recognition of that event, I felt compelled to share with our Gallagher’s Pen family the piece below from my book, “Right Side Up Thinking in an Upside Down World” . . . 

The episode we’ve come to call “Palm Sunday” begins what is popularly referred to as “Holy Week” and will be celebrated this weekend by Christians around the world. All four Gospel writers record the event, but John’s account provides a concise summary: Continue reading →

Posted in Devotional, Easter, Faith, Family, and Culture, Forgiveness, Insights | Tagged , , , , , | 2 Comments

Resurrection ~ Nothing to Brag About

Posted on April 6, 2019 by

In last week’s post, “Resurrection ~ No Happy Ending Without It,” we took a brief look at an event that took place during the closing days of Jesus’ life and ministry. Before leaving that event, there’s at least one other element worth highlighting.

As His rendezvous with the cross loomed nearer, Jesus unfolded one of the most astounding scenes ever seen by human eyes. It was Continue reading →

Posted in Devotional, Easter, Faith, Family, and Culture, Forgiveness, Insights, Right Side Up, Wake Up Calls | Tagged , , , , | 2 Comments

Resurrection ~ No Happy Ending Without It

Posted on March 30, 2019 by

It doesn’t require the performance of some religious ritual or spiritual exercise to move our minds and hearts toward the idea of resurrection. It can happen in situations that are not overtly spiritual at all. It might pop up, for instance, while watching the climactic scene from a Disney movie. We could be watching the beauty, Belle, confessing her love for the newly deceased creature with way too many teeth, affectionately known as “the Beast,” or maybe it’s Rapunzel weeping magical tears over the corpse of her beloved Eugene, “Flynn Ryder” Fitzherbert, or a similar scene from one of many other fictional tales, but in every case, we heartily embrace the notion that death shouldn’t be allowed to win. Resurrection seems eminently reasonable to us in these fictional situations, and is quite easily accomplished. All it takes is Continue reading →

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The Word of Promise

Posted on March 23, 2019 by

We flawed human beings are always looking for devices to protect ourselves. We see it in things like insurance policies, home security networks, investment diversification, flu shots, and seat belts. We are constantly devising ways to try to counteract our vulnerability, even in the words we choose in risky commitments — like weddings.

Let me say up front that I’m not categorically averse to Continue reading →

Posted in Devotional, Faith, Family, and Culture, Insights, Marriage and Family, Right Side Up | Tagged , , , , | 6 Comments

Whose Mission Is It Really?

Posted on March 16, 2019 by

When we see the kinds of challenges facing our country these days, it’s tempting sometimes just to give up. I’m not surprised that some people have quit watching or reading news reports altogether. We may not know exactly what shocking new images will be shoved in our face on any given day, but we can be confident that whatever they turn out to be, they will have been carefully selected and edited to make us feel anxious, enraged, horrified, brokenhearted, depressed, despondent, or hopelessly overwhelmed. With every new day, it seems like another paragon of economic and scientific idiocy declares that the human race cannot possibly survive unless we quit driving cars, turn off our air conditioners, stop eating meat, expand the killing of inconvenient babies, ban plastic straws, give up using toilet paper, and force every awful, atmosphere polluting cow in the country to eat Gas-X. The emotional drain can get to be just too much to handle.

A “Progressive” Epiphany ~
It comes as no surprise that many want to Continue reading →

Posted in Faith and Politics, Faith, Family, and Culture, In the News, Insights, Right Side Up, Wake Up Calls | Tagged , , , , | 2 Comments