Another old friend—a guy I’ve known since kindergarten—retired last week, although not to sit in a rocking chair. Instead, he is already out hiking the Appalachian Trail. Sometimes, I think of how nice it would be to sit back, relax and leave the world of deadlines and other stress behind. I felt a sharp twinge…
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Since I live in a region battered by unemployment, drug overdoses, and a future filled with uncertainty, a recent spiritual awakening in southern West Virginia is the stuff of considerable excitement. And there is additional backstory to this particular episode that is also fascinating. It started about three weeks ago at lunch with an old…
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A member of my professional editors group recently posted a lament about a client who had quibbled with nearly everything she had marked on a chapter of the woman’s book. The editor wondered whether she should continue or bow out of the job. That brought a quick response from another editor who told of a…
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I wrote recently about a book-editing-related venture to Los Angeles. What I didn’t mention in that blog was how the trip put me behind the 8-ball with another book edit that needed some last-minute revisions. When I told the editor my trip would make it impossible to meet the deadline, she extended it a week.…
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Although more than 20 years have passed since the airing of the final episode of Cheers, one can still watch the hit sitcom via Hulu and other online streaming options. While I rarely watched the show, its ubiquitous tagline, “Where everybody knows your name,” lives on. Particularly the oft-expressed craving for “community.” That theme popped…
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My weekly men’s group departed recently from our customary look at a book or DVD series to spend a couple months reviewing a devotional. The discussion that particularly caught my attention centered on the theme, “Crucial Choices.” The week’s lesson included an excerpt from C.S. Lewis’ masterpiece, Mere Christianity. It talked about how the choices…
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More than 15 years ago I was part of a mission team that traveled to Vermont. We did the original grunt work—such as ripping out old soffit and plaster—on a building that years later became a combination retreat center and missionary housing. One thing I’ve never forgotten was a comment made by the pastor who…
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Ah, March Madness. As is the case this year, the upcoming Final Four weekend often runs into early April. Still, the NCAA championship will forever be linked with the month that births the tournament (and coincides with my birthday). Yet, this year hoops hysteria will linger close to summer, thanks to the breakout performance of…
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Back in the last century, when CD-ROMs were still a big deal, Christianity Today reviewed a new collection of Methodism founder John Wesley’s writings. The review noted the ease with which users could do a word search to isolate the famed English spiritual leader’s observations on a particular topic. However, the note that sticks out…
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Former First Lady Nancy Reagan was laid to rest last week, amid glowing tributes and remembrances from dignitaries across the nation. However, this being the modern era, her death also sparked criticisms, like this one that argued her “Just Say No” anti-drug initiative was a failure. Not only did it create hysteria and lead to…
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