On Christmas Day, Heresies Begin in Earnest
On Christmas Day, heresies begin in earnest. Our desire for self-justification cannot abide the Incarnation. It is a scandal that we should need God to come to us in this…
The Saddest Face I Ever Attempted To Paint
Artist Francis B. Carpenter said Abraham Lincoln had “the saddest face I ever attempted to paint.” His law partner said Lincoln’s “melancholy dripped from him as he walked.” His life…
One Word in Absolute Darkness
With the oil boom, it seldom is dark anymore at our farm. There is usually some light from gas flares. It’s not like the experience of darkness we used to…
Who Goes with You into Surgery?
One of my vain ideas was to reach 60 without being an inpatient of a hospital. Didn’t work. Two Januaries in a row, I was hospitalized. I was a suffering…
Who Volunteers for Humiliation?
At Landsberg, Germany, as the U.S. Army occupies and loots the defeated German town, Capt. Lewis Nixon carries on his quest for Vat 69, a Scotch blended whiskey. He has…
The Silver Spoon Jesus Left in a Drawer
Before 1700, common folk had wooden spoons. Well off people had silver. The saying, "He was born with a silver spoon in his mouth," views a high-born person as knowing…
Combining Was Pretty Rough on Jesus
The combine, originally called the combine harvester, is a machine that harvests grain. It combines three harvest operations: reaping, threshing, and winnowing. Winnowing uses wind to separate chaff and dust…
One Big Wrong Makes Us Right
As lousy moments go, it was one of the lousiest. It was during a visit to Stordahl Cemetery. Not much there. The church building is gone. Only the bell and…
Jesus Visted Doc Martin’s Surgery
In the British television show, Doc Martin, the newly arrived doctor in a small village is annoyed by villagers using the waiting room of his surgery as a social club.…
Jesus’ Senior Picture Was Not in the Newspaper
I redesigned my Dad’s ’69 Chevy pickup. From a stop sign on a side street, I pulled into an intersection entering a 4-lane avenue. Wham! I hadn’t seen that car…