A close friend returned from an extended mission trip in Asia. He came home with great stories and deepened faith. And one other thing. A pair of chopsticks. Talk about annoying. Every time we had lunch at a Chinese restaurant, he ate everything but the soup with chopsticks. And he wasn’t even good at it.…
There’s this funny thing about the Christian life. The more you help others, the better off you are. Let’s apply this principle to prayer. We find this interesting little verse toward the end of the Book of Job. Despite Job’s great losses and pain, the rest of his life became the best of his life.…
A man was surprised with a gift that was dropped off in his driveway – a brand new car. He was so excited that he cleaned the car daily, vacuumed the carpet faithfully, and waxed the car meticulously. The only thing he didn’t do was drive the car. He loved to tell his friends about…
There is this little verse in the New Testament that we often miss. “Jesus said to her, ‘Give me a drink’” (John 4:7). When Jesus made this request of the woman at the well, he was teaching us a bigger lesson. How many times have we been expecting Jesus Christ to quench our thirst when…
There is an old acronym in recovery called H.A.L.T. It reminds us that we are often triggered when we are (a) hungry, (a) angry, (c) lonely, and (d) tired. Let me add two more: B.S. We are at risk when we are bored and stressed. 1. Boredom We get into trouble if we aren’t into…
Next season, The Bachelor will resume its 20-year run on network television. Because some years have had multiple seasons, this will mark the 25th season for the top-rated show. As you probably know, the premise is that a man picks his wife from among several women who essentially audition for the job each week, in…
Many of the men I meet ask the predictable question, “How do I know if I really have an addiction?” Let me suggest four criteria for any addiction. A need for more of the behavior to achieve the desired effect. Feelings of withdrawal when unable to engage in the addictive behavior. Repeated unsuccessful attempts to…
On this day in history, 1875, Senator Andrew Johnson died at the home of his daughter. Yes, you read that correctly – Senator Andrew Johnson. You see, the first president to be impeached also became the first (and only) president to serve in the United States Senate – after his presidency. On December 29, 1998,…
Guys, if you think your sexual betrayal isn’t hurting anybody, read on. Barbara Steffens reports, in “The Traumatic Nature of Disclosure for Wives of Sexual Addicts,” that a survey of 63 wives of self-identified sex addicts found that 70 percent of these women met most criteria for a diagnosis of post-traumatic stress disorder, and 71…
“My mama always said life was like a box of chocolates. You never know what you’re gonna get.” (Forrest Gump, 1994) A good example of a “box of chocolates” occurred for me when I attended an SA meeting a couple of years ago. That night, a newcomer was present. I talked to him for a…