Be inspired by these articles written by Wayne for your enjoyment and inspiration

The University of HOME

The University of HOME

Parents have many fundamental responsibilities in nurturing their children. Food, clothing and shelter are three basic needs for every child. But then come certain provisions that may be seen by some as discretionary and possibly even considered nonessential. Parents...
His Business or Our Busyness?

His Business or Our Busyness?

Once I received a call from a local pastor asking if I could drop by to see him the next time I was in his area. A few days later, I called to make sure he was in and went to the the church that he pastors. As we sat in his office talking, he shared with me that...
“Having Different Gifts”

“Having Different Gifts”

How would Christianity change if every born again believer in Jesus Christ knew beyond a shadow of a doubt what their spiritual gift was? ANSWER: Very little unless they chose to use their gifts and empower them with love. In 1 Corinthians 12, Paul is dealing with a...
Hope is not Just Another  Four-Letter Word

Hope is not Just Another Four-Letter Word

May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit. Romans 15:13 Having served at a Christian addiction recovery facility for many years, I have observed both hope and...
The Line in the Sand

The Line in the Sand

John Henson wrote about a high school senior and valedictorian who was bragging that he could pick his college based upon his 1510 SAT score. He even went so far as to say that he could even get into Harvard if he chose to. This score may get the young man into an...
Do I Love Her?

Do I Love Her?

A few years ago, I took a trip to the Smokey Mountains and a week later, I returned with a completed manuscript for a book. The title was A Word from Pop and it was written for my two grandchildren. The subtitle, what I want them to know before I go sums up the...
Seeking Answers

Seeking Answers

Many will say that you can find the answer to all questions in the Bible. My response to that statement is … usually.    One might ask, “Who should I marry?”  But the question they should perhaps ask first is, “should I marry at all?”...
Tender Little Flowers

Tender Little Flowers

Most parents would never think of themselves as being dysfunctional. They would also never imagine that they could be abusive to their children. But what does a dysfunctional family look like and how does a home become overtly dysfunctional? Dysfunctional families...
Failure to Communicate

Failure to Communicate

Possibly the most memorable movie line for my generation concerning communication was made by a character actor named Strother Martin. Although Martin’s name is not recognizable to most movie goers, he was a very successful and prolific actor appearing in...
Evaluate: A Time for Transparency

Evaluate: A Time for Transparency

I recently read about a U.S. military encounter with the Islamic terrorist group Al-Shabaab which took place in Kenya a few years ago. Our Air Force was flying an armed drone at 25,000 feet above a small village. Below, a group of militants were assembling...
A Work in Progress

A Work in Progress

In C. S. Lewis’s book, Mere Christianity, he quotes 19th century preacher and author George MacDonald. He wrote, “Imagine yourself as a living house and God comes in to rebuild that house. At first, perhaps, you can understand what He is doing. He is getting the...
Inspired

Inspired

Creative people have always fascinated me. I genuinely appreciate their imagination, ingenuity and originality. Even more than that, I appreciate those that can bring their ideas to fruition. A while back, I read about a fellow named Murray Spangler. As a department...
How to Fail

How to Fail

Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn is perhaps the most notable Christian dissident of the twentieth century. Born in Russia in 1918, he was raised by his mother in the Russian Orthodox Church. As he grew into a young man, he was educated in mathematics, but took...
The God Called Government

The God Called Government

God has established Biblical standards for us to live by. In fact, He’s done such a good job with this that those that have chosen to follow his direction have prospered. God also established some parameters for many of the entities in society. When we heed...
Everybody is God’s Somebody

Everybody is God’s Somebody

Most of us have at one time or another, been disrespected in some way. We remember how that made us feel and the range of emotions that soon followed. We all want to receive respect at some level and have our sense of self-worth validated. In Matt. 15:22, we find the...
Hope Needs a Foundation

Hope Needs a Foundation

Jean-Paul Sartre was a French playwright, novelist, political activist, biographer, and literary critic. He was also one of the leading figures in 20th-century French philosophy and Marxism. Born in Paris in 1905, he would spend his entire life as a devout atheist. He...
Can We Foretell the Future?

Can We Foretell the Future?

I had a very good friend once that had recently become a Christian. He had owned his own business for years and though he kept his men busy with work, he could never seem to get ahead financially. He once confided in me that he had become so frustrated with always...
What Kept Her There?

What Kept Her There?

“Now there stood by the cross of Jesus His mother……” (John 19:25) The hands and feet of an infant are a marvel to behold! Mary had surely held her baby Jesus, stroking His plump little hands and feet. At the cross, she had seen them pierced mercilessly by huge...
“Who Tripped Me?”

“Who Tripped Me?”

After school, a teacher was looking out her classroom window while reflecting on her day when she saw a boy walking alone down the steps.  Just as she was about to return to her work, he slipped and fell.  Picking himself up, he looked around at the empty schoolyard...
How Many Weak Links?

How Many Weak Links?

Imagine that you joined with nine-hundred ninety-nine of your friends to start a new business. You all agree that you will deposit ten percent of your income every week or month into the business account. If the average income for the thousand partners is $44,720 a...
Living with Passion

Living with Passion

PASSION: “An intense, driving, over-mastering feeling; an object of desire or deep interest. As I have studied the scriptures over the years, I have learned to watch for those biblical characters who exhibit great passion for God. For example, Joseph was a man who...
Boat Ride Back in Time

Boat Ride Back in Time

At this point in time, it is difficult to focus on positive, uplifting experiences taking place. This is because they are being quickly overshadowed by unpleasant, catastrophic, evil and outright depraved behavior all around us. As a result, I sometimes put away all...
Now I See!

Now I See!

Have you ever walked into a dark room and thought you knew exactly where you were, but when the light came on, you discovered you were way off? There is a story of a man in John chapter 3 who could see very well, but was spiritually blind. Nicodemus had come to Jesus...
Truth or Consequences?

Truth or Consequences?

There is a sweet fragrance that emanates from truth, but there is a putrid, sour stench that permeates a lie. Those who have a reputation for choosing their words carefully will earn the trust of many. However, there will always be solemn consequences for those that...
Who is this Man?

Who is this Man?

In a book written by an author calling himself, “Avi,” you will find a question asked that you have heard countless times. The book is about a young boy who gets so entangled in reading action comics that he imagines others surrounding him to be super-heroes in...
Peacemaker                                or                                         Peace-breaker?

Peacemaker or Peace-breaker?

We all know the type. Whenever there is trouble, this person miraculously shows up to stir the pot. As discord begins to smolder, there is often one that faithfully fans the flame. But then there is also another that is usually flying below the radar. This one is...
Is There a Child in There?

Is There a Child in There?

Once when I was a young boy, I saw a movie about a haunted house with a secret passage inside a closet. For several days afterward, I was busy making what I thought were “home improvements.” As it turned out my parents didn’t agree when they caught me cutting a hole...
The Still, Small Voice

The Still, Small Voice

We all hear it preached, taught, sung, and read books that tell us how to know God’s will in all things. But wouldn’t it be great if these methods really worked for us? Honestly, I usually operate in a fog concerning what I should or should not be doing. I suppose I...
It Takes Time

It Takes Time

A while back I wrote to you about how many of us seem to waste our resources. Possibly the greatest resource that God gives to us is time. Paul wrote in Ephesians 5:15-16, See then that you walk circumspectly, not as fools but as wise,  redeeming the...
Ever Eavesdrop

Ever Eavesdrop

We live in interesting times! We are so conscious of our privacy that laws have been passed to protect us from those who find our information noteworthy. Both our government and businesses spend countless millions securing those bits of information they deem valuable....
Growth that Gives

Growth that Gives

Many times, I think that we tend to look back at the first century believers as far better than twenty-first century believers. But were they really? James, Peter, John and Paul spent much of their time attempting to show them their faults and encourage them to be...
On Another Note …

On Another Note …

I was very briefly exposed to music education as a child in elementary school. This was in the form of extracurricular classes that I don’t recall choosing to participate in. Our teacher would just say to us, “OK it’s time to go to music class...
Good Medicine … Bad Taste!

Good Medicine … Bad Taste!

It seems like it was just a few years ago as a child staying with my grandmother that I would develop a stomach ache. She would immediately go to her medicine cabinet and come back with a bottle of very dark tonic and a spoon. It was then that the race would begin as...
Walls

Walls

With thousands from across the world wanting to enter the United States, there is quite a bit of discussion about controlling immigration. As a nation of laws, we have previously depended upon those from other countries to respect the rules for entering our country....
No Homeless in Heaven

No Homeless in Heaven

I recently read a story of a homeless man that lived on the streets in a large city. His father had died several years earlier leaving him a large sum of money. He was notified by the estate trustee, but  had never made any effort to claim his portion of his...
Identity Crisis

Identity Crisis

As a kid growing up in a small town, there were always those that seemed to be in the spotlight. Some were outgoing, sometimes comedic, while others were just downright brash. While a part of me wanted to be accepted, I just could not find the courage to compete for...
A New Thing

A New Thing

My earliest memories as a child was living in a very small house that my dad and grandpa had built. They had both worked days at their respective jobs and when they finished, they rushed home. Once there, they would work into the night using an oil lantern, hammers...
Pristine Perspective

Pristine Perspective

There’s an old story about a farmer who had little more than a son, a horse, and a small farm. They struggled working from dawn to dusk to provide a meager subsistence for themselves. One night a fierce storm knocked down a tree and broke a fence allowing the...
Eternity’s Greatest Honor

Eternity’s Greatest Honor

Lately I have been trying to imagine what it was like when Jesus began to put his team of disciples together. As God incarnate, He knew infinitely more about them than they could have ever known. Which would be the bold and boisterous one that would often speak first...
“To every thing there is a season”

“To every thing there is a season”

Most of us have our favorite seasons in which we seem to thrive. In a similar way, our lives are also divided into seasons with some being more gratifying and pleasurable than others. As we get older, we can look back and clearly distinguish the beginning and end of...
Giggling in the Dark

Giggling in the Dark

When I was much younger, it seems that the power would go off a lot more often than it does now. It still happens even today and usually when we need it most. Should that happen at eight o’clock tonight, what might our first reaction be?  Since there isn’t much...
“I Once was Lost …”

“I Once was Lost …”

There seems to be an over-abundance of hateful, filthy-mouthed, vile, immoral, slandering, lying, violent, unethical, arrogant, profane, rebellious, unruly, selfish, and  outright ungodly people in this world. We are seeing today the very worst of humanity and it...
Divine Appointment

Divine Appointment

A few years ago a friend offered his cabin in the Georgia foothills of the Smoky Mountains to me for a short sabbatical. The timing seemed perfect since it had been a while since I had just dropped everything and left my familiar surroundings. As I was packing for the...
It’s Not What You Say …

It’s Not What You Say …

Dr. Adrian Rogers was once asked, “Do you believe that a Jew without Jesus is lost?” He remembered thinking at the time that if he said yes, then he would appear to be a racist or bigot. If he said no, he would dishonor the Lord Jesus Christ who died for the...
Choose Jesus

Choose Jesus

We sometimes hear about people who win the lottery, but soon after buying cars, homes, boats and traveling the world, they end up broke. Sixty-one year-old Brazilian billionaire, Eike Batista made his fortune in mining and oil and gas exploration. In 2012, he was...
Our Legacy

Our Legacy

A while back, I read an article in the Wall Street Journal about a new trend in estate planning. It reported that some parents were opting out of leaving their assets to their kids and instead choosing to leave them an different kind of inheritance. They had taken the...
Faux Fortitude

Faux Fortitude

There are some that appear to be completely fearless. I’ve also met very strong, macho men who would jump up in a chair when they saw a mouse. The truth is, we all fear something and quite a few appear to be afraid of most everything. So, what are you afraid...
Universal Standard for Truth

Universal Standard for Truth

In a time when information on any topic is at our fingertips, it is sad to find so many misconceptions involving matters eternal. The proof of this is found in an endless stream of thoughtless assumptions about Christianity within its own fraternity. In chapter four...

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