This article was originally published in the Franklin News-Post.In just about three months, my wife and I will join a very special club.  We will become grandparents.  Our eldest daughter, Jordan, and her husband, Michael, are expecting their first child in November.  By the time their daughter arrives, they will have celebrated their third wedding anniversary.  As people have learned of this upco...  Read More

This article was originally published in the Franklin News-Post.Biblically speaking, we are to forgive others their trespasses against us if we want God to forgive us of our sins.  I have written about forgiveness in this column many times.  The more I speak on this subject, the more it is evident that many of us struggle with it.  I want to highlight a story involving my mother and how a move of ...  Read More

This article was originally published in the Franklin News-Post.For most of my youth, our family lived in an apartment complex for which my mom served as a resident manager.  One afternoon, she had set up an ironing board in the building’s laundry room.  As a small boy, I entered the laundry room and saw the iron resting atop the ironing board.  My mom was removing the next load of clothes from on...  Read More

This article was originally published in the Franklin News-Post.Today’s column was written by an inmate who is incarcerated at a Virginia Department of Correction facility.  My wife and I have been ministering to him for nearly two years.  Thankfully, not all of us know what it is like to serve time in a physical prison.  However, many of us have been imprisoned spiritually.  The man who wrote thi...  Read More

This article was originally published in the Franklin News-Post.Obedience is a big word in the Christian vocabulary.  Frankly, it is a word and a process with which many struggle – me included.  Why do we struggle with being obedient to the will of God?  In Isaiah 55:8 (KJV), it is explained, “For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, saith the Lord.”   Some of the very...  Read More

This article was originally published in the Franklin News-Post.I love social media platforms as a tool for our ministry outreach. Many of us have connected with others that are experiencing a need and seeking prayer.  We also have an opportunity to share in a moment of celebration.I was convicted by the Holy Spirit a short while ago about my response to prayer requests.  I developed a habit of re...  Read More

This article was originally published in the Franklin News-Post.For more than 100 years, children in the United States have been honoring their mothers with homemade trinkets, handmade greeting cards, flowers, a meal, and other gifts.  The second Sunday in May has been set aside as a day to thank our moms for all that they do for us.  Everyone of us walking this earth has or had a mother.  No diff...  Read More

This article was originally published in the Franklin News-Post.Each week that I have an opportunity to write this column, I reflect on what is going on in our world and what it is God wants me to share.  Easter Sunday, or as many Christians refer to it, Resurrection Sunday has just passed.  I am writing this column just for the one.  Are you the one?Maybe you accepted an invitation to attend a ch...  Read More

This article was originally published in the Franklin News-Post.That just sounds creepy, doesn’t it?  But, when we indicate to others that we are people of faith, we are going to have eyes on us. If we go to church on Sunday and speak harshly to people on Monday, it will be noticed.  If we go to Bible study on Wednesday and gossip about our coworker on Thursday, it will be noticed.  The way we beh...  Read More

This article was originally published in the Franklin News-Post.An employee at our local hospital recently asked me to add her to my prayer list.  As we sat in the hospital cafeteria, I told her, let’s pray right now.  So, we did in the hospital cafeteria.While the cafeteria was mostly empty, there were two women sitting at an adjoining table.  One woman commented, “Will you come pray with us?”  W...  Read More

This article was originally published in the Franklin News-Post.I read this column last week that was written by Rev. Matthew Ricks. He wrote about how his faith guides him through mental health concerns.  This is a topic of interest to me.  If you have read what I have shared previously, you know that I have struggled with such issues for much of my adult life.  Ten years ago, this past February,...  Read More

This article originally appeared in the Franklin News-Post.For those who identify as Christians, the very essence of our faith walk is rooted in forgiveness – love and forgiveness.  The concept of forgiveness is addressed throughout the pages of the Bible.  I’m not a Bible scholar.  Nor am I an educated theologian.  I am merely sharing my journey down this pathway of forgiveness.In Matthew 6:9-13 ...  Read More