Paralympians Excel with Optimism and So Can We The fortnight of Olympic competition reaches the halfway point this weekend, but the real heroes will take center stage next month when the Paralympic Games are held in Beijing. These athletes may not receive the same attention or acclaim as those currently competing, but a strong caseContinue reading “In A Nutshell | February 11, 2022”
Category Archives: In A Nutshell
In A Nutshell | February 4, 2022
God and the Groundhog: Whom Do You Believe? There is an unwritten rule in ministry that a pastor should not preach about Groundhog Day more than once in a career. So, since I invited Gabe the Groundhog to speak through his alter ego (Bill Braucher) a year ago, I will honor that rule and notContinue reading “In A Nutshell | February 4, 2022”
In A Nutshell | January 28, 2022
Life’s Lessons Often Revealed in the Snow As I gazed out of my office window earlier this week, I watched the snow fall — slowly, steadily, even serenely — adding several more inches to the nearly half-a-foot that had already accumulated. Even though we typically don’t get a lot of snow in our area —Continue reading “In A Nutshell | January 28, 2022”
In A Nutshell | January 21, 2022
Searching for the Light that Illuminates all of Life Debby Boone has the distinction of recording one of the most popular — and most disparaged — love ballads of all time. “You Light Up My Life” spent 10 weeks atop Billboard Magazine’s Top 100 songs in 1977, but it wasn’t long before the song becamewidelyContinue reading “In A Nutshell | January 21, 2022”
In A Nutshell | January 14, 2022
Consider the Ways We Can Answer God’s Call With the increasing number of unwanted phone calls that we all receive on a daily basis, most of us are choosing not to answer unless we recognize the number. Likewise, when we order online, we are reluctant to participate in any of the online surveys that followContinue reading “In A Nutshell | January 14, 2022”
In A Nutshell | January 7, 2022
Time to Trim the Excess and Fortify Our Faith in 2022 Another joyous Christmas holiday has come and gone, and once again I am feeling the effects of overindulgence. It usually begins with a Thanksgiving Day feast — complete with turkey, stuffing, and mashed potatoes — and concludes five or six weeks later with aContinue reading “In A Nutshell | January 7, 2022”
In A Nutshell | December 31, 2021
Hold on to the Keys to the Kingdom Few things rankle me more than losing my keys, and unfortunately I do it more often than I would like to admit. You know how it goes, right? You come into the house from the garage with your hands full of groceries or some other item, andContinue reading “In A Nutshell | December 31, 2021”
In A Nutshell | December 24, 2021
Embracing the Real Christmas Story ‘Twas the night before Christmas and all through the house…well you know the rest of the story, right? Santa and his reindeer brought gifts of joy to every girl and boy, and they all lived happily ever after. Well, that’s one version of the Christmas story, but it is obviouslyContinue reading “In A Nutshell | December 24, 2021”
In A Nutshell | December 17, 2021
‘Tis the Season to See the Light One of my favorite Christmas activities — although we don’t do it as often as we would like — is to visit the various light displays in the tri-state area. There are many fabulous shows in the weeks leading up to Christmas. Some are professionally done and chargeContinue reading “In A Nutshell | December 17, 2021”
In A Nutshell | December 10, 2021
Generosity Reigns Supreme at Oak Chapel The gifts are piling up under the Chrismon Tree in the Sanctuary, and Christmas is still two weeks away! How wonderful it is to be associated with such a kind, caring, and compassionate congregation! You have given freely and generously to a young homeless couple and their two infantContinue reading “In A Nutshell | December 10, 2021”