WISE CHRISTIANS CLIP OBITUARIES
Wise shoppers clip coupons. My wife, Dolly, is a persistent coupon clipper. She saves us hundreds of dollars a year with this discipline. She only uses the coupons for what she plans to purchase, anyway. She knows what day specific supermarket flyers come with the...
Do You (or Someone You Love) Feel Hopeless?
Hopeless?? Fleeting, it's like a bird in flight, or like a shooting star at night, or lightning that spans the sky. Gone in the blink of an eye. Elusive, like the fog that lifts when morning sun sends its gifts; or the zigzagging butterfly that you can't...
What Does It Look Like to Live Strong and Finish Well?
What attitudes and behaviors impede your spiritual growth as a Christ-follower? How do these particular mindsets and behaviors show as you get older? In your walk with Christ, what attitude is a prerequisite for living and serving well? Why is this same attitude...
Few, They Tell Me, Finish Well
As a Christ-follower, what would "finishing well" look like for you? When it comes time for you to die, if you look back on your life, what would you need to see in order to conclude, "By God's grace, I finished well!" Rather than thinking those questions pertain...
HOW IS BROKENNESS A BLESSING?
Has a painful past experience or upsetting circumstance left you reeling, and you figure you'll never reach your potential for Christ? Do you think that a frail temperament, insecurity in social situations and recurring episodes of depression disqualify you from a...
Do You Need to Laugh Today?
Life is too short not to horse around now and then. "Lighten up, dad!" That's what my younger son Stephen told me several years ago after a couple of blogs I wrote illustrating the harsh symptoms of a depressive episode. He wasn't minimizing the effects of...
How Do I Deal with My Spouse’s Depression?
A letter from Dolly Powell (Terry's wife) to a friend who sought her input. Dear Ellen, You asked me how I deal with my husband's depression. I'm happy to share my thoughts and experiences, but I'll say right from the start that one's God-given temperament...
How and When Do You Handle Your Storms?
Is a storm assailing you? Figuratively speaking, a storm is anything that threatens your sense of security. It's an alarming situation that instills uncertainty, fear and anxiety. Are you facing any of these storms? An estranged relationship with a loved one, who...
Are You Putting Too Much Faith in Your Faith?
He knew the ice! Allow me to back up and describe the context for that remark. Fear Sabotaged Fun A church asked me to speak at a winter retreat for the youth group, held at a camp in northern Wisconsin. As my wife and I arrived, I thought we were entering...
O COME, ALL YE NEEDY!
In 2022, it emerged as one of my favorite words in the Bible. In terms of significance, it's right up there with grace, mercy, faith and cross. What is this word? It tells me what to do when I'm physically or emotionally exhausted. It offers a strategy when...
When Christmas Isn’t So Merry
A Special Introduction To An Invigorating Truth A few data-based studies I've read on the prevalence of depression among the general population do not report an escalation of serious mood disorders during the weeks leading up to Christmas. Stress increases for a...
Do You Listen With Your Heart?
In 2013, as I wrote the first draft of the final chapter of a book titled Serve Strong: Biblical Encouragement to Sustain God's Servants, despair overwhelmed me. That week, a severe depressive episode enveloped me. My soul ached, and I couldn't identify an...
