Homo Economicus

Harvard professor Arthur Brooks has spent years researching the seemingly inescapable association between achievement and satisfaction. Most of us have been duped into thinking that we are just one deal, one raise, or one dollar short of true happiness.  The pursuit of personal wealth, or homo economicus, consumes most of us. One study found that…

The Dried Up Brook

“So Elijah did as the Lord told him, and camped beside Kerith Brook, east of the Jordan. The ravens brought him bread and meat each morning and evening, and he drank from the brook. But after a while the brook dried up, for there was no rainfall anywhere in the land” (I Kings 17:5-7). Does…

Motorcycle Money

“From his abundance we have all received one gracious blessing after another” (John 1:16). I read about a motorcyclist roaring down the coastal highway in the Philippines who didn’t realize that the zipper of his backpack had come open. The man was making a business transfer with a large amount of cash. The bills began…

Igal, Gaddiel, and Shammua

Let’s play Bible trivia.  Question #1 – Who were Igal, Gaddiel, and Shammua?  Question #2 – Who were Joshua and Caleb? The answer to both questions is the same. These five men were among the 12 spies whom Moses sent to explore Canaan, to see if they were able to take the Promised Land. Igal,…

The Mark Twain Diet

A month after my heart surgery last year, my cardiologist gave me the simple formula for living a long life. He said, “Eat what you don’t like.” Mark Twain took this a little further: “The only way to keep your health is to eat what you don’t want, drink what you don’t like, and do…

There’s Still Hope

When we began our ministry in 2017, we knew one word had to be in the title – hope. We talk a lot about hope here. But there is another word that is just as important. Still. There’s Hope and There’s Still Hope are two completely different things.  Here’s what we believe. There’s STILL hope,…

Sanctification that Matters

The Bible promises three things to every believer: “You were washed, sanctified, and justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ” (1 Corinthians 6:11). Let’s talk about that middle one – sanctification. The process of sanctification simply means to become more like Christ. There are several ways we might try this. Many of us…

Depressing

I have some depressing news for you.  According to the National Institute of Mental Health, 6.7 percent of the adult population has dealt with depression. And data released by Dr. Paul Greenberg and his colleagues concludes that the number of Americans with Major Depression Disorder increased by 13 percent from 2010 to 2018, with 47…

Happy Birthday!

If you were born on January 16, happy birthday! You share your birthday with nearly 22 million other Earthlings. Here is a list of just a few of those 22 million people who were born on January 16. We celebrate birthdays because life matters. Your life matters. But you shouldn’t wait until your next birthday…

You Can Do This!

Most addicts make a commitment to quit their behavior, but they don’t stick to their plan. Why is this? I suggest several reasons. Any obstacle to your recovery is worthy of a wrecking ball. Making a commitment to recovery is the easy part. I know, because I made that commitment 100 times. And I quit…