Lessons from Cracker Barrel

Cracker Barrel has a special place in my heart. Strategically placed along the nation's busy interstates, Cracker Barrel restaurants were a safe choice among many suspect and questionable diners that dotted the roadsides during family road trips. The food was quality, the staff was friendly, and the peg game provided hours of fun. I spent many hours in those restaurants staring at walls adorned with an assortment of antique signs and tchotchkes, drinking root beer from a frosted glass, and rocking to and fro on the front porch.

For as long as I can remember, Cracker Barrels looked…

Do you suppose that I came to grant peace on earth? I tell you, no, but rather division; for from now on five members in one household will be divided, three against two and two against three. They will be divided, father against son and son against father, mother against daughter and daughter against mother, mother-in-law against daughter-in-law and daughter-in-law against mother-in-law. (Luke 12:51-53)

Did Jesus mean that he wants people to be at enmity with each other? Of course not. But, inevitably, he and his teaching divide people. Those who embrace him and those who reject…

“Even Simon himself believed, and after being baptized he continued with Philip. And seeing signs and great miracles performed, he was amazed”(Acts 8:13).

Philip continues to work with Simon. “Even Simon himself believed, and after being baptized he continued with Philip. And seeing signs and great miracles performed, he was amazed”(Acts 8:13). He follows Philip around, fascinated at the miracles he is performing and presumably learning from the teaching he is giving.

The apostles also act. “Now when the apostles at Jerusalem heard that Samaria had received the word of God, they sent to them Peter and John, who came down and…

Find Peace Through the Noise

Lately, it feels difficult to have a conversation that stays light for very long. It does not matter how ordinary the starting point is. Before long, it turns toward the news. A tragedy that just happened. Another story that leaves you shaking your head. Another reminder of how unsettled the world feels. Sometimes the conversation ends, but the weight does not. It lingers in our minds. You find yourself thinking about it later, replaying details you can’t change, carrying concern you do not know where to put. And over time, that quiet heaviness begins to feel…

Opportunity

Opportunity is a set of circumstances that makes it possible to do something. We should never take opportunities for granted. No one else will have exactly the same opportunities you have. And, many opportunities you have today you might not have a year from now.

The apostle Paul was always taking advantage of opportunities. When Paul was in Athens (Acts 17), the Epicureans and Stoics took him up to the Areopagus to hear what “strange doctrines” he was teaching. Despite the obvious penchant of the city toward idolatry, Paul took the opportunity to preach the Gospel of Jesus Christ. He even…

Why me? Does that ever bother you? It does me. Maybe you think that because no one knows who you are that you are not particularly important. Or perhaps you have some feeling that because of your relative insignificance, it doesn’t matter whether you live a life of holiness and goodness. After all, nobody notices anyway. Furthermore, doing evil sometimes at least brings some sort of recognition, even if it’s the wrong kind. After all, acceptance is important for all of us, right?

Most of us feel inferior at times. We have feelings of inadequacy or we feel unimportant. So much…

In Matthew 6, Jesus offers some instruction on prayer — specifically, misguided approaches to prayer versus the kind of prayer God desires.

First, Jesus contrasts the prayer God desires with the self-righteousness of hypocrites:

When you pray, you are not to be like the hypocrites; for they love to stand and pray in the synagogues and on the street corners so that they may be seen by men. Truly I say to you, they have their reward in full. But you, when you pray, go into your inner room,…

Why So Soon ?

We have two golden retrievers, and they love sharing slices of mandarin oranges with my dad (or is it the other way around?)  They recognize the bag when it enters the house with the rest of the groceries, and they get excited just like it’s a bag of dog treats. However, if the bag has a squishy orange in it, or if the bowl of oranges sits a little too long, the taste turns. If dad doesn’t like an orange, he will toss all the pieces to the dogs, but even they usually refuse to eat the…

Daniel was a prophet during the 70 years of Babylonian captivity.  He was of the “royal family and of the nobles” of the Israelites and a “youth” when taken captive (Dan. 1:3-4).  The book that bears his name also tells about three of his friends– Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-nego– who, like him, remained faithful to God in the face of difficult circumstances. 

In Daniel 3, Nebuchadnezzar, the king of Babylon, built a gold statue that measured 90 feet high and 9 feet wide.  This was most likely in honor of Babylon being identified as the head of gold in the interpretation…

When Dreams Don’t Come True

“Somewhere over the rainbow, skies are blue; and the dreams that you dare to
dream really do come true.” So sings Dorothy longingly in The Wizard of Oz. In
a world of heart-crushing disappointments everyone longs for a life with “a happy
ending.”
It is a uniquely human thing to dream dreams – to be able to imagine the ideal
and long for it. And God, far from discouraging our longings, has put a vision of
the future in our hearts which is free of suffering and sin, a life of unending joy
and peace (Rev…