February, 2011 // Posts published in February, 2011
The Basis of Faith
What is faith? I get the idea that some people think faith is believing the impossible. That would be called “stupidity.” Faith is best defined as believing the truth when there is little or no physical evidence to support our conviction. Can I believe without evidence? Yes, I can believe for the sole reason that...
A Good Day
Is this a good day? That question has a different meaning at the beginning of the day than at the middle or end. First thing in the morning, it asks for a judgment on what hasn’t yet happened. Since I can’t predict the future, the logical answer should be: I don’t know. But I do...
Called by Name
In my dream, I heard a voice say, “Frank!” It was forceful, but it wasn’t a shout. I recognized the voice, although I hadn’t heard it in twenty years. My father. The sound had a unique tone that I’ve never heard from anyone else’s mouth. If the word hadn’t been my name, I might have...
I Can Do All Things
If I don’t believe I can achieve my dreams, I’ll never try. But if I believe, the pursuit of my dreams may turn out to be impossible or too costly. In that case I will quit, advertise my failure, and waste all that time, money, and effort. How do I know what I can and...
Drifting
I need to count my blessings and keep rowing until the fog clears. I can’t build success with resources I don’t have, but what I do have is huge. Have I done everything I know to do? Not really. In fact, I have no doubt that my abilities are sufficient to do whatever God wants....
Inspiration versus Perspiration
I used to think I could speak well on sheer inspiration. If I had a general idea about what I wanted to say, I figured the right words would come to mind. Amazingly, they often did, but I doubted that I had done my best. At other times, I invested many hours in preparation. I...
Walking Alone
When I was two years old, the family took a vacation to the Black Hills of South Dakota and Mount Rushmore. I fell apart emotionally, not because I was homesick but because I felt alone. For a long time, Mom couldn’t figure out why I was crying. It made no sense that I would be...
Freedom
The birds sail high above me and dart up and out as if they have no concern about anything. Shouldn’t they worry about predators? What about disease? They seem to have no purpose other than to be where they are and enjoy what they have. They have no job for which they will be late....
Creativity
What use is a 2 x 4 on a basketball court? Why should a pig have feathers? Should chickens learn to sing? What would I think if a songbird made eloquent speeches? There are no limits to the possibilities of what useful things I can learn from the exploration of impossibilities. The best ideas are...
Gratitude
When I was a kid, I had to write “thank you” cards to relatives and friends for every birthday or Christmas gift I received. I wrote to Grandma, Thank you for the socks. They are very nice. I wasn’t really grateful, but I still had to say so. Mom said if I didn’t express my...
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