The classic movie, The Wizard of Oz, takes a turn when Toto, Dorothy’s little dog pulls back a curtain and reveals that the Great Oz is a fraud, just a man pulling levers on a machine. There’s no magic, at… Continue reading

When I researched my family lineage, family lore took on specific names and I was able to trace, through my paternal grandmother, a line all the way back to the Cornelius Van Wyck of 17th century New Amsterdam (now called… Continue reading

Sunday night church gatherings often include something called ‘testimony time.’ In the churches of my childhood, there were always two or three people who could be counted on to stand up and tell the same stories. When I was 12… Continue reading

When I am making a major purchase, I check on the consumer report. Does the product work as advertised? Does it have a good service quality? Various agencies create rigorous testing standards that allow consumers to compare one manufacturers product… Continue reading

Dad had a stable and each Spring time a new group of colts arrived that needed to be trained, the goal being having a saddle-broke mount ready by the Fall! My summer work, along with my Dad’s help, was breaking… Continue reading

It’s not hard to tell the difference between just doing what needs to be done and engaging with real passion! My son, Sean, loves coffee and it shows. I just make a cup of coffee. He creates a drink to… Continue reading

“Well, hang in there,” is a phrase meant to comfort that we have all said to somebody. We tell a woman with cancer, a guy whose wife has filed for divorce, an investor whose lost most of his savings –… Continue reading

In his excellent book, ”The Life You’ve Always Wanted,” John Ortberg tells the story of cranky Hank, a church member who despite knowing the Scripture, faithfully attending church services, and saying his prayers, never really goes through a spiritual transformation.… Continue reading

We all get our feelings hurt, are ignored or treated rudely, from time to time. Relationships can be tough on us, right? We have little control over how others act, but we are in charge of our response. Taking offense… Continue reading

ABC News interviewed world-renowned physicist, Stephen Hawking. When Diane Sawyer asked him about life’s greatest questions, he said he would like to know why the universe and humans exist. When she asked him if he believed that it was the… Continue reading