“For the Lord himself will come down from heaven, with a loud command, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet call of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first. After that, we who are still alive and are left will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And so we will be with the Lord forever” (1 Thess. 4:16-17).
When I was a journalist in my 20s, I needed to verify a fact about atheism. This was before the Internet age, so I phoned the Texas headquarters of American Atheists. Madalyn Murray O’Hair, the mother of modern atheism in this country, answered my call. Apparently she had a very small staff!
A wise man once told me that when I find myself around single women, especially when I find them attractive or interesting, I should mention my wife and family early in the conversation. I have found this advice to be very useful on many occasions.
God doesn’t want us to live in isolation. I realized many years ago that I desperately need people in my life in order to fulfill my purpose. My parents invested in me, and so did teachers, coaches, employers, pastors, role models and good friends. I am not self-made, and neither are you. Any success we have achieved is the result of someone taking time to instruct, encourage or correct us. That’s humbling!
Growing up, I loved drive-in movies. There was something adventurous about sitting on top of the car and eating popcorn while Luke Skywalker battled Darth Vader.
On a breezy March afternoon in Fresno, California, two fifth graders were navigating the wind with their dime store kites which were gracefully equipped with homemade tails for balance and “accuracy.” I was one of those “aeronautic experts.” The other was my school chum, Larry. Like newly rich millionaires, we mowed through a stash of chocolate bars that filled our pockets.
