Weekly Devotionals and Blogs
The Hinge of the Doorway to a Locked Heart May be Very Small
Keith, I am a deacon in the church and people tell me I’m a good witness for Christ in our community. But behind closed doors in our family things are often very tense, snippy and hard-headed. There are certain things concerning the roles of husband and wife that I...
Temptation: A Strong Wind for a Flickering Flame
Keith, no one I know talks about the imperious and demanding Mr. Hyde (or Ms. Hyde) transformation that temptation can change even a deeply committed (to our Lord) Christian into a totally self-centered drooling squinty-eyed lascivious or gluttonous pagan. It would be...
The Frightened Elephant in the Living Room of Faith
Keith,I’ve been a Christian for many years. I’ve committed my whole life to Christ and have been taught that I should trust God. But inside where I face the challenges like (1) the changing economy that threatens my vocation, (2) the reckless and (to me) dangerous...
Forgiveness? You’ve Got to be Kidding!
Keith, how can I quit resenting people who have ridiculed me or lied to me, etc.? I can’t seem to shake off resentments—even when I pray and want to let them go. When I first read the question I thought, you’re asking the wrong guy. But then I realized that I haven’t...
Attitude Check
Keith, when I decided to become a parish priest I had no idea that some people consider ministers as “hired hands” and not colleagues, brothers or sisters on the adventure of living for Christ. My response to being treated as a lackey by some prominent church people...
The Death Throes of an Omniscient “Helper”
Keith, my college aged kids and my husband claim that I am trying to control them when I offer suggestions-when all I am trying to do is help them. How can I help them see that I want them to make their own decisions? Ooooh! That question strikes too close to home....
The Silent Gift of Love
Keith, what is the best way you’ve found to begin to convey the message that they are loved by God to people who are very cognitive and scientifically oriented and don’t even believe there is a God? Recently I ran across the following conversation between a camp...
It’s Never Too Late for God’s Kind of Healing
Keith, how does a man get reconciled with his father? I never was close to mine and he is very sick, maybe dying. I’m afraid he’s going to die and we’ll never be close. They tell me not to push the issue now, but if I don’t, I’ll never get closure with him. Any ideas?...
God’s Motivational Strategy—Splitting an “Adam”
Keith, I’m an ordained minister in a local church. I’ve tried all the programs our denomination has and almost no one in our parish is strongly motivated by them. In fact, most of my congregation seems to want only to float downstream in their canoes—without even ever...
