On December 31 the sun will set on 2019 for the last time. Its allotment of 365 days will be fully spent. What might have been but was not will not be, at least not in 2019. What’s done is done; the past is past; what is undone is yet to be done. On January 1 the sun will rise for the first time on a new year. It is an opportunity to start fresh, do better and recapture the dreams we once had. In reality when the clock strikes midnight on New Year’s Eve, the old year will be buried and the new year will be birthed. Now, lest we fritter away the privileges 2020 will afford, I want to offer some thoughts for your consideration. 1. The challenges of yesteryear won’t go away! Whatever you envisi

When George Frideric Handel feverishly wrote for a solid thirteen hours in composing the famous oratorio Messiah, it was a real deal! Written in 1741, it is still much loved today. When General George Washington knelt for prayer in the snow at Valley Forge (1777–1778), praying for his army to survive the bitter winter and the Revolutionary War, it was a real deal! When Henry Wadsworth Longfellow wrote “I Heard the Bells on Christmas Day” on Christmas Day in 1863 during the Civil War, it was a real deal to him. When I go shopping for pricey things, I want what I buy to be genuine. I want the real deal! Who would want fake silver or imitation gold? None of us would. My parents were country peo

The messianic prophecies of the Old Testament created a stir in prophecy discussions for hundreds of years. Then it happened. Jesus was born in Bethlehem. The shepherds, the angelic choir, King Herod and a host of others were in a stir for months. Twelve years later when Jesus went to the temple, His interactions with the intellectuals of His day created a stir. His preaching and teaching created a stir in towns and villages everywhere He went. His miracles certified His ministry and set the crowds in a stir. The days surrounding the crucifixion had the whole Jerusalem area in an uproar, indeed, a great stir. Then came the resurrection. With that astounding turn of events, a fresh new wind b

A happy home happens by deliberate design and intent, but not through indifference and carelessness. Without a commitment to building a happy home, it will most likely be a place of discontentment and even discord—if it survives at all. A dysfunctional home may occasionally have a happy time, but it is not the normal order of the day. What makes a happy home? It is not just about fun and games. There should be some of that, of course; but primarily a happy home is a place where the members of the household have a sense of contentment, a definite purpose and an assurance of acceptance, and where they experience the joy of everyday living. It can and should happen that way, but there are condi

Here is a question I hear over and over again. “How do you do that?” they ask. It may have to do with balancing your life between your family and your work. At other times the puzzled questioner can’t see how a busy person handles a variety of tasks successfully. Frankly, any one of us could at some time or other ask the question. On a day when you have more to do than you think you can do or when you are facing a series of difficult days, you can feel totally overwhelmed, get a case of nerves and be dog-tired when night comes. That seems to happen pretty often. But here’s a lesson we would do well to learn. A father said to his son, “Do you know how the chef at a large restaurant peels pota