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It was the day before Christmas Eve and she was trying to finish up some last minute shopping at the mall. The kids tugged her towards the line to make requests from Santa. After a 25 minute wait, they were finally able to sit on his lap and tell him their dream gifts for the year. Mom smiled knowingly, as she had already wrapped most of those items. On the way out of the mall, they passed an elderly woman who was gently ringing a red-handled silver bell standing beside

The world has been afraid that this was coming. When I was in Korea three years ago, it was interspersed as an impending dread in casual conversations. Now it has become a reality. North Korea, already possessors of nuclear weaponry, has now successfully sent a rocket into space, demonstrating it’s ability to send a nuclear payload to just about any part of the world. Several other countries have that capability, but none are as ill trusted as North Korea...not yet, anyway. I

I have to admit, I loved Christmas as a kid…but for all the wrong reasons. Yes, excitement was in the air. I could feel the “Christmas magic” all the Hallmark Channel specials this time of the year talk about. But for me, it was based on the anticipation of “getting”. It shouldn’t have been, but that’s what it was for me. Every year we went to church and my parochial school put on a program where the focus was on Jesus’ birth. But I think most of us were just looking forward

With Thanksgiving behind us, Christmas is coming! Every year around this time I get questions from moms and dads asking for my opinion on Santa Claus: “Did you tell your kids there is a Santa?” Some are very adamant: “Santa Claus is a replacement of Jesus in this secularized society and just another way of spreading the materialism of this age.” Others see the fable as harmless delightful fantasy: “I believed in Santa when I was a kid and it didn’t hurt me! It’s just a

I grew up hunting with my dad, who grew up hunting with his dad, and the tradition went back generations. So for Christmas when I was 12 I received my first real gun. I had already taken the hunter’s safety course, had lots of practice with BB guns and a pellet gun, as well as plenty of practice shooting times and lessons from my dad using his guns. But this was special. This was a real shot gun that I could use for duck and pheasant hunting, and it was all mine. My dad bough

A couple of days ago, two guys walked into the Open Pantry on the corner of Pflaum and Stoughton Road in Madison, Wisconsin (a convenience store I’ve been in a few times). One man diverted the cashier’s attention by asking for directions, while the other slipped behind the counter and into a small office where he grabbed a pile of bills the woman had been counting. As the men were about to leave, she glanced into her office and saw the money was missing and began to demand th

For what will you be remembered?     Medieval Europeans often gave permanent names to high profile people who had built a reputation for themselves. Charles the Simple was the son of Louis the Stammerer. They called him this because of his policy of making concessions to Viking invaders rather than fighting. Then there was Louis the Sluggard, noted for his self-indulgence. He ruled from 986 to 987 over the Franks. Ethelred the Unready (968-1016) was so called because of his i

Should natural disasters be considered the judgement of God? There are some who argue, “Absolutely!” and others, “Of course not!” So which is it?     It’s hard to deny that God used natural disasters in Scripture to get people’s attention, both in bringing judgement and in encouraging repentance. In Amos 4, Yahweh spoke to Israel through Amos and told them that he had sent hunger, famine, floods, storms and earthquakes to get them to return to him. Jesus said that in the end

This campaign season is getting old, isn’t it? Could you imagine if we lived in one of the swing states? Here in Illinois, the state is so overwhelmingly democratic that republican presidential candidates hardly have a chance. We see some commercials that are nationally televised, but not like places such as Ohio, Virginia, Florida, Iowa, or even Wisconsin. In some of the more contested counties of those states, campaign commercials are constant...and those communities just w

An angel appears at a faculty meeting and tells the dean that in return for his unselfish and exemplary behavior, the Lord will reward him with his choice of infinite wealth, wisdom or beauty. Without hesitating, the dean selects infinite wisdom.     “Done!” says the angel, and disappears in a cloud of smoke and a bolt of lightning. Now, all heads turn toward the dean, who sits surrounded by a faint halo of light. At length, one of his colleagues whispers, “Say something.”   

My wife is a flight attendant and one of the perks of her job is that she gets to see many parts of the world, albeit, in short periods of time. She will sometimes have an extended layover (24 hours or so) in an interesting place and have the chance to get in a little sightseeing. On some occasions, if I’m able to take the time off and if there are available seats on the plane, I will travel with her and take advantage of the flight and the free accommodations in whatever 4 s

As a church, we are not involved politically. We believe that no church or religious organization should dictate to the government it’s policies and that the government is not to dictate to any church it’s activities. As a pastor, I do not speak out on topics that are solely political in nature, and I have never endorsed a candidate for office or encouraged people to vote for any candidate or in support of any political party.     But there are issues of morality and Biblical