An old friend sent me a note after my husband’s death: “[Alan] was . . . a grappler with God. He was a real Jacob/Israel and a strong reason why I am a Christian today.” I’d never thought to compare Alan’s struggles with t…

Minutes after U.S. President Harry Truman announced the end of World War II, a phone rang in a small clapboard house in Grandview, Missouri. A ninety-two-year-old woman excused herself to take the call. Her guest heard her say, “Hello. . . . Yes,…

I greeted our youth group as my husband and I handed out Bibles. “God will use these priceless gifts to change your life,” I said. That night, a few students committed to reading the gospel of John together. We continued inviting the group …

We camped under the stars, with nothing between us and the infinite West African sky. No need for a tent in the dry season. But the fire was crucial. “Never let the fire go out,” Dad said, prodding the logs with a stick. Fire kept wildlife …

Andrew Card was the Chief of Staff to American president George W. Bush. In an interview regarding his role in the White House he explained, “In each staff member’s office hangs a framed statement of purpose: ‘We serve at the pleasure…

“Why do I get a strawberry lollipop when she has grape?” my six-year-old niece asked. My nieces and nephew taught me early on that children often compare what they’re given with what others receive. This means that as the doting aunt,…

To express her sadness, Allie, a young girl, wrote on a piece of wood and set it in a park: “To be honest, I’m sad. Nobody ever wants to hang out with me, and I have lost the only person that listens. I cry every day.”
When someone f…

After the devastation of Hurricane Katrina in 2005, New Orleans worked to slowly rebuild. One of the most hard-hit areas was the Lower Ninth Ward, where, years after Katrina, residents lacked access to basic resources. Burnell Cotlon worked to change t…

More than two hundred million people from a variety of faiths undertake a pilgrimage each year. For many throughout the ages, a pilgrim’s task has been to journey to a sacred place to receive some kind of blessing. It’s been all about …

Years before Zoom was an accessible communication tool, a friend asked me to join her on a video call to discuss a project. Through the tone of my emails, she could tell I was baffled, so she suggested I find a teenager to help me figure out how to set…