To listen to today’s reflection as a podcast, click here He’s back. The last time we saw The Most Interesting Man in the World, he was boarding a rocket holding a one-way ticket to Mars. As he waved goodbye to the people of Earth, the narrator of the 30-second TV commercial solemnly informed us, “His only regret is not knowing what regret feels… Read more »
To listen to today’s reflection as a podcast, click here In the long-running CBS reality show Survivor, the worst thing that can happen to a contestant is being voted off the island. When it came to the reality of being incarcerated in America’s most secure federal penitentiary, the worst thing that could happen was having to spend one more day on the island. The… Read more »
To listen to today’s reflection as a podcast, click here How Much Land Does a Man Need? That’s the title of a short story written in 1886 by the Russian novelist Leo Tolstoy. It’s only a few pages long. But James Joyce, one of the 20th century’s most celebrated writers, declared it to be “the greatest story that the literature of the world knows.” Perhaps that’s… Read more »
To listen to today’s reflection as a podcast, click here Last week, Mary Sue and I watched an hour-long special on the state of Indiana. We were born in the Hoosier state and have lived here most of our lives. We cherish genuine affection for this place – the way one can be unflinchingly loyal to a family member even while being intimately acquainted… Read more »
To listen to today’s reflection as a podcast, click here In 1997, two days before her first birthday, Alexandra “Alex” Scott was diagnosed with a childhood cancer called neuroblastoma. At first Alex made good progress in overcoming her disease. By age two she had learned to stand and walk with leg braces. But just before her fourth birthday, doctors learned that her tumors were growing… Read more »
To listen to today’s reflection as a podcast, click here Dr. Craig Barnes, who retired a few years ago as president of Princeton Theological Seminary, says he will never forget the time he was called to a hospital emergency room. His good friend Duane Barney had suffered a heart attack. Barnes sat down beside Duane’s wife, Virginia. After consoling her, they prayed together. They waited to hear some… Read more »
To listen to today’s reflection as a podcast, click here People change. We have the wedding pictures to prove it. But how do we know that the figure in that long-ago snapshot is the same person we can share coffee with today? This is what psychologists call the Problem of the Self. Is there something lasting and durable at the core of every human… Read more »
To listen to today’s reflection as a podcast, click here Not all feats of daring in the early days of America’s space program happened in outer space. There was also an extraordinary amount of bravery on the ground, behind closed doors, in NASA’s research centers. Margot Lee Shetterly’s book Hidden Figures – which became an award-winning 2016 motion picture – documents the stories of… Read more »
To listen to today’s reflection as a podcast, click here Dr. David Livingstone, the celebrated 19th century British missionary, anti-slavery activist, and explorer of central Africa, arrived on one occasion at the edge of a large territory that was ruled by a tribal chieftain. He was commanded to stop at the perimeter and wait. According to tradition, the chief would come out to meet… Read more »
To listen to today’s reflection as a podcast, click here At the doorway to this last weekend of January, snow covers something like 65% of the United States. Is your heart set on creating the tallest snowman or the most spectacular snow fort your neighbors have ever seen? If you’re hoping to challenge some existing records, you’d better get started early and recruit a… Read more »