Shortly before his 17th birthday, Craig Barnes and his brother came home from the Christian camps where they had been working for the summer. They were PK’s – “pastor’s kids” – and their identity had largely been shaped by the predictable rhythms of home and ministry. All that changed when they returned to discover their parents were getting divorced. Their mother had… Read more »
Back in the 1980s, Phil Vischer had a big idea. The puppeteer and amateur filmmaker dreamed of developing a creative way of teaching kids how to discern right from wrong. Along the way, he would introduce them to Bible basics. His big idea led to Big Idea Productions, which led to VeggieTales – the ongoing adventures of Bob the Tomato and Larry… Read more »
Two weekends ago, more than 20,000 runners, joggers, walkers, and wheelchair participants left the starting line of the OneAmerica Indy Mini-Marathon. The race is one of the world’s premiere 13.1-mile annual events. It begins and ends in downtown Indianapolis, and famously includes a single two-and-a-half-mile lap around the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, home of the “500.” For some participants, the Mini-Indy is the… Read more »
Year after year Stumpy and Martha attended the fair in their home state, and every summer it was the same story. Stumpy was tantalized by the old-fashioned biplane in which anybody could take a ride for ten dollars, and Martha was disgusted by such an obvious waste of money. “Ten dollars is ten dollars,” she would always say. And Stumpy would go… Read more »
Just a few months ago, most Americans couldn’t have located Ukraine on a map. Even after saturation coverage of that nation’s plight since Russia’s invasion last February, few people are aware that Ukraine has been intermittently trampled by powerful neighbors from both the east and the west over the past two centuries. Every recent generation of Ukrainians has been burdened with… Read more »
Most people think that medieval theologians got it mostly right when they were conjuring up with their rogue’s gallery of Seven Deadly Sins. With regard to the behaviors and attitudes that assault our life with God, pride, anger, lust, greed, and envy are no-brainers. Gluttony might be a bit of a head-scratcher. But sloth is the “deadly sin” that seems most… Read more »
Dwight Edwards, of the Grace School of Theology in Texas, recalls the time that he and his family attended a church social event. As they walked into the crowded community room, Edwards’ youngest son – who was then about four – was holding on to his dad’s pants leg. By the time they had made their way through the crowd, however,… Read more »
It’s become known as the Fail Mary. Lance Easley calls it something else: the worst moment of his life. This fall will mark the 10th anniversary of the Monday Night Football contest when Easley, a replacement referee, ruled that a desperation pass by then-Seattle Seahawks quarterback Russell Wilson was a touchdown. It was the game’s final play. Seahawks win, Green Bay… Read more »
When Dr. J. Robertson McQuilkin died in 2016, he left behind a glittering ministry track record. During his 88 years he served as a Bible college faculty member and the headmaster of a Christian school. He and his wife Muriel and their four children journeyed to Japan, where over the course of a dozen years he planted five new congregations. He… Read more »
Ugliness can give birth to beautiful things. It’s difficult to overstate the ugliness of the Caribbean sugar cane plantations of the 18th and 19th centuries. African slaves were forced to work in brutal conditions so middle-class Europeans could spoon sugar into their cups of coffee and tea. The slaves clung to as much of their indigenous culture as they could. That included… Read more »
