Authored by Mara Hodler

I’ve been thinking a lot about addiction lately. I’m not sure why. Maybe it’s been triggered by some of the stories that I’ve recently heard about various addictions, or the TV shows I’ve seen, or even by some habits I’ve formed in my own life that have caused me to question whether or not I’m in control and

Authored by Mara Hodler

Maybe you have found yourself in the scary trap of addiction. Addiction is when you lose control of the ability to say “no” to something or walk away from it. If you realize that you may be addicted to something, know that you are not alone.

Authored by Mara Hodler

Do you ever wonder if you are doing what God wants you to do? As in, what’s that special purpose you were created for? What is it that you are meant to do that will give your life meaning? I’ve wondered those things, and I still do sometimes. These are some of life’s big questions that we don’t always

Authored by Mara Hodler

I once read a definition of forgiveness that said: forgiveness; to make it as if the wrong had never happened. That sounds about like God’s definition of forgiveness. Picture a field of pure white snow, and smack dab in the middle of that field, a pool of blood. Gruesome, I know. It’s also very noticeable. The red against the

Authored by Tina Kapp

Mahatma Gandhi1 once said, “The world provides enough for every man’s need but not for every man’s greed.” Sometimes it’s easy to agree with proclamations of world peace and say things like, “The rich should really give to the poor and solve world hunger!” However, when the giving strikes closer to home,

Authored by Mara Hodler

Have you ever gone rock climbing? Okay, before you picture me as some cool, savvy rock climber, let me define a little more clearly what I mean. You know those rock-climbing walls that have little nooks and grasps? Sometimes they’re high enough that you need a harness and belay device to help you get up

Authored by Scott MacGregor

I’ve often wished I had a truckload of money that I could use to help others. There are many people I know who need financial help for one thing or another, and it would be great to have the means to be that help. I daydream of coming along and dropping a bunch of cash on my friends, family, and others, and enjoying watching them get out from under financial burdens and be free to enjoy life without the stress

Authored by Chris Cedar (a guest contribution)

A barrel of wine gets finer over a period of time. It is often left in a basement cellar to reach a ready state. However, not each barrel is the same. Each one has its own point at which it will yield the greatest benefit and flavor.

But who makes the distinction? Who can evaluate how the

Authored by Mara Hodler

I was 18 years old and embarking on my first solo intercontinental journey from Italy, my home of several years, to Miami, Florida. Like any good Italian (okay, I’m not really Italian, but pretty close), I had shopped for the perfect outfit for the trip—a herringbone sheath dress paired with a complementing

Authored by Dan Roselle

I remember one of the first times I experienced an answered prayer in my life. I was 19 and a new Christian, just learning about Jesus and spiritual principles. I was living at a mission center for six months in an accelerated program for discipleship. I was in a dorm with about nine other young men

Authored by Sonia Purkiss (a guest contribution)

Hebrews 13:2 says, “Do not forget to show hospitality to strangers, for by doing so some people have shown hospitality to angels without knowing it.”1

I was familiar with this verse when I was a child, and I

Authored by Marie Story

There’s a story in the Bible that tells of Jesus going back to His hometown. I think it’s one of the saddest stories in the Bible. The story is pretty much summed up in the final verse of the chapter: “And He did not do many mighty works there, because of their unbelief.”1

Authored by T.M.

Many boys love the story of Aladdin. What’s not to like? Adventure galore, good guys versus bad guys, magic ring and magic lamp, continual triumph of good over evil, and the ultimate success story of beggar boy transformed into prince by awesome genie. Aladdin and the Lamp is a story of wish

Authored by T.M.

I’m a book lover. I love to read. Give me something with words, and I can happily eat ink off of pages for hours. A consequence of this is that I often pick up on whether or not a storyline will sell.

Plots along the lines of “Matilda is happy, beautiful, successful, and will live happily-ever-after-forever-and-ever,” don’t seem to