Nearly three years ago, our city of Huntington, West Virginia made national headlines after 26 people overdosed on fentanyl-laced heroin in one afternoon. Given the negative image that accrued from such notice, it was heartening to see a mid-June follow-up report on 60 Minutes. It spotlighted the efforts since that have registered significant progress in…
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With our church in the process of launching small groups as a way of building more community on our congregation, I’ve been thinking lately about the need for such closeness. In his sermon about this initiative, our pastor read from Acts 2:42-47, the classic case study for authentic church growth. Especially the last two verses…
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Earlier this year, when gas mysteriously rose toward the three-dollar-per-gallon level, I grumbled a little. That is, until I remembered that it hasn’t been that many years since I figured petrol would never dip below the three-dollar-level again. Then it started dipping, followed by most welcome news a month ago that prices were set to…
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We’re just one week away from the Fourth of July and our nation’s 243rd birthday. I admit it: I’m an old softie when it comes to celebrating the United States of America and what it has meant to the world. That said, I was never a fan of such slogans as “America: Love it or…
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The recent flood of news stories, telecasts, and video clips tied to the 75th anniversary of the invasion at Normandy stirred up many personal memories. One concerned a man I used to work with as an associate. Later, he served as the communications contact for several of my freelance assignments. About 15 years ago, he…
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Since I’m heavily involved in the church we attend, I don’t often get a chance to visit other congregations. However, an opportunity arose June 2 when I accompanied an author to the church where he once had been an elder and active for 20-plus years for a book signing. While I didn’t have a role…
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While not an experienced public speaker, I led two workshops last month at the annual meeting of the Christian PEN: Proofreaders and Editors Network in Nashville. I began the first with the comment: “I joined Toastmasters two years ago so if I got into situations like this, I wouldn’t be so terrified. . . .…
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A friend changed jobs last summer. Though not as frequently in contact with the public as before, he has much more quality time with coworkers. Keeping the idea of evangelism in mind, he has struck up conversations with several of them. One particularly friendly exchange ended with my friend inviting the coworker to church. “You’re…
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We all need a strong dose of inspiration periodically to keep us going. I found mine in early May at the Christian PEN: Proofreaders and Editors Network’s annual meeting in Nashville. In addition to the learning and professional development that came from associating with other freelance editors for two days, the meeting started with one…
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Many years ago I was part of a group from Louisville that made a mission trip to Vermont. There, we started reconstruction work on an old building that later became a retreat center and housing for visiting missionaries. One afternoon during a work break, the host pastor explained why he had become a confirmed New…
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