How do you feel about libraries? They're one of my favorite places! As the library doors swoosh open, I love breathing in the familiar scent of book pages and seeing the colorful spines lined along the shelves. I don't even have a favorite section; I love them all—from history to literature to comparative religion to [...]

I recently planted sunflowers and realized the nature of the great outdoors reflects God's nature. Consider the seasons: there's an objective order to them—it's always hottest in the summer, and birds migrate to warmer places in the fall. There's a rightand wrong time for things to happen. Yet there's also a flexibility. For example, there [...]

Levi was not a popular guy; in fact, most people didn't like Levi at all. In Jewish society during Jesus's time, tax collectors were despised as the lowest of the low. They worked for the enemy—Rome. They cheated their own people, and they got rich doing it. That was the kind of man Levi was—but [...]

During the summer after finishing high school, I had the opportunity to fulfill a dream: leading my all-state marching band as drum major. Along with other musicians and dancers in this group, I flew for many hours across many states to Honolulu, Hawaii. Once there, we performed in multiple venues and enjoyed free time in [...]

When I wake up in the morning Let each breath be love When I go out and aboutLet my actions spread your love When I come home againLet me love those around me When life gets hardLet your love surround me When others hurt meLet me respond with love When I am scaredLet your love [...]

Before, I used to think I was weak. I was not proud of myself. I looked down on myself because of my imperfections. I did not consider myself beautiful, talented, significant, or important. I had a broken family. I was lacking. I envied people. I thought I was not loveable or likable.How do you see [...]

Sometimes, thinking about the future makes me feel stressed. I can get caught up trying to figure out what I'm going to do, and I can miss out on a lot.One of the most important things I can miss out on when I'm only thinking about the future is the present. I might not notice [...]

I've been to many funerals. I've yet to see the deceased rise up from the coffin and thank me for coming. I suppose there are scenes like this in horror movies, but movie-makers have ways of making you believe things like that can actually happen. Jesus was never in a movie, but He used His [...]

The air was cold and bitter as Taylor trudged up the mountain path. She was after a rare flower; this flower was the last hope of saving her village from a deadly illness.The flower only grew in the harsh northern mountains. Many had gone before Taylor and had returned with nothing but broken bones and [...]

Have you ever asked a question and received an answer that began, “Well, in a perfect world ”? What would your perfect world be like? No pain or sorrow? Everything beautiful and fun?When God made the world, He made everything good. There was beauty everywhere, and no pain anywhere. Adam and Eve were placed in [...]