A Dependable Moral Code

by Mark Nickles   Years ago, during college, I drove a delivery truck for a bookstore. It was an old box-style vehicle, with no power breaks. I had to be very intentional about “mashing” down on the break peddle at stoplights and in traffic jams, for fear of rolling forward. I knew I wasn’t paying enough attention

Change the Standard

by Abby Kelly   The second my feet hit the floor, I felt overwhelmed. “Lord, the house feels like such a mess!” Now, I’m a confessed compulsive cleaner. But I justify that little character flaw by saying, “I have two cats and a dog! How could I possibly keep up with all the hair?”  Chalking it up

Counselor’s Corner: How Not to Stop When Life Gets Rough

by stephanie reck  Life can be hard sometimes, and there are those times that life can throw us devastating blows. I know how easy it is to want to quit and pull the covers over my head when life gets rough-I have done this more than I would have liked to. There were times in my

Counselor’s Corner: Accepting What You Cannot Change

by stephanie reck   We can prevent a lot of frustration, disappointment, and stress by letting go of what we cannot control. I want certain people in my life to be different, and for many years I tried unsuccessfully to change them. I thought they needed my help to change, so I gave everything to try and

Church Life What’s Under Your Hood?

by J Patrick Bowman   Ladies, you’ve heard the admonition accessorize, accessorize, accessorize! The advertisers and merchants cry out for your attention to their latest bags, purses, shoes, jewelry, nail wraps, hairpieces, hair colors, fake tattoos, real tattoos, completely redesigned body parts and it’s sad to say in the day we live,  they call out to men

Counselor’s Corner: Be Intentional About Focusing on What is Lovely, Praiseworthy, and a Good Report

by stephanie reck  5/ 3/21 / Christian Living Perhaps you’re not like me and don’t have any trouble with negative thoughts, I, however, struggle more often than I would like to with “stinkin’ thinkin.” Many times, I wake up to a battle going on in my mind, a battle of me thinking thoughts of defeat and discouragement.

5 Hidden Benefits of Failure You Should Know

by Ogaga Eruteya  3/18/2020 Whether it is an exam, a business, an interview or just any other venture, failure is not something desirable. But sometimes it happens. And when it does, it comes along with valuable lessons. However, whether we will profit from failure or not, depends on how we respond. If you respond positively every time you

Counselor’s Corner: Get Unstuck By Making Small Daily Changes

by stephanie reck 4/14/21 Maybe you desire to see a change in your life, but because of fear, anxiety, or trauma, you have remained where you are at. Fear can keep you paralyzed from moving forward. This last year has been challenging to make any additional changes in our lives mainly due to all the unwanted changes

Don’t Let Go When a Loved One is in A State of Addiction

by Jennifer Rubino Champion   For some time now, I have been angry, yes angry at someone I love because they have retreated backwards into their drug addiction. I have watched them as they physically morph back into the thin, unhealthy person they were before. They drop off the radar and never appear at church; they never

Counselor’s Corner: When People Violate Your Boundaries

by stephanie reck   Personal boundaries are guidelines, rules or limits that a person creates to identify reasonable, safe and permissible ways for other people to behave towards them and how they will respond when someone passes those limits. We have all had people in our lives that have violated our boundaries, whether it’s a family member

Take No Offence

by Chris Gambrell   In today’s world, we seem to offend people rather easily. We’ve possibly offended or hurt someone’s feelings, whether it was intentional or not; sadly, people sometimes say and do things that are careless, blunt, insensitive or even mean-spirited. While we can’t control the intentions or behavior of others, we can determine how we

When to Let Someone Back in Your Life that Has Hurt You

by stephanie reck   Relationships can be complicated, especially when there have been times of hurt and pain. How do you know when it may be time to reengage in a relationship that has caused you pain? In this article I will explore when you will know when it’s time to let someone back into your life,

Achieving Political Unity

To the Jews I became as a Jew, in order to win Jews. To those under the law I became as one under the law (though not being myself under the law) that I might win those under the law.  To those outside the law I became as one outside the law (not being outside

Gratitude, What a Way to Live!

By Anjte Hill In a day when the pressure is on to buy the latest new gadgets or products, it is tempting to look and want more. Dr. Robert Emmons, in his new book on gratitude, says by the age of twenty-one the average adult will have seen one million TV commercials. By playing on

Why You Can Trust God Now More Than Ever

A large poplar tree gives shade to my family on hot sunny days. The tree’s shade is a result of the tree’s shadow. This gives us an idea of what David meant when he said “He that dwelleth in the secret place of the most  High shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty.”  Psalm 91:1   A tree’s shadow/shade protects

5 Reasons Christ Died for Us

There are at least five reasons Jesus voluntarily endured unbelievable suffering on a wooden cross for us. They are all based on His unbelievable love for people, and His desire to share His abundant life with us for eternity. Take a look at five of the benefits we freely receive . His Death Grants Admission

Three Ways God Will Guide You

 God Guides Through Dreams and Visions: Psalms 32:8  I will instruct thee and teach thee in the way which thou shalt go: I will guide thee with mine eye. I can look at my children at times to give them direction and they know exactly what I want them to do. With a simple look I

Hollywood Romance or Real Relationship?

by Leah Nichols  You know you’ve done it. You’ve dreamed about a dashing romantic hero who will sweep you off your feet and take you away from the dullness of everyday life. Far away from the boredom of the mundane, you will delight in the continuous excitement of true love! ‘Course, there are many, many ways

Confessions of a Dead Workaholic

by Matthew Eldridge   I hesitantly knocked on Frankie’s door. After all, he was pretty much a stranger. We lived next door to each other in an apartment building and casually exchanged head nods and “hellos” with each passing. He seemed to be a nice man, always commenting on how precious he thought my baby daughter was.

Why Everyone Suffers Rejection

by Nellie Shani   I was not surprised when he walked into my office. “Typical case”, I thought to myself. At five feet, we were almost the same height as I sat on my high chair. Bad case of acne, ears that stand out, buck-toothed. I smiled and extended my hand. An hour later he was gone