Gjyste Vjerdha was busy working her nightly, graveyard-shift cleaning job at a restaurant with her 22-year-old son, Gentjan. As she tidied up a restroom, Gjyste found some women’s rings worth thousands of dollars. The thought of keeping the treasures might have crossed her mind, but she chose... read more »

My friend’s sister is due to give birth, and no one is happy about it. Her baby has Trisomy 18, a fatal disease that will likely claim the infant just minutes after she is born. It seems fiendishly upside down that the baby is alive as long as she remains within her mother, but the moment she... read more »

The other day I was putting air in my car’s tires. The small wording on the side of the tires warned me, “Maximum pressure: 35 psi.” I’m no mechanic, but this is good information to know. I’ve been told that too much air in a tire will negatively affect braking,... read more »

The December holidays are the longest in Kenya’s school calendar, and with excited children running and hollering up and down helter-skelter, it can sometimes feel like a never-ending drag. And so it was amidst such turmoil that I tugged my eight year old daughter away from her play and... read more »

Michael felt as if his prayers were simply bouncing off the ceiling. He couldn’t understand God’s silence. Day after day he pleaded with Him to deal with the injustice in his workplace. But evil persisted, and God seemed absent. Can you identify with Michael? Habakkuk could. He lived... read more »

What’s one spiritual discipline you plan to work on in 2011? Why? ... read more »

In the last year, my family has had much to worry about. My wife wasn’t called back to her full-time teaching position (we counted on her income to help cover household expenses), my son was having recurring chest pain that we thought was due to an enlarged heart, our insurance was running out... read more »

A pastor gathered his wife and children together for a time of prayer, just prior to his departure for an overseas missions trip. He prayed, “Dear Lord, please protect my wife and the children while I’m gone.” When he finished, his wife asked him: “Who do you think protects... read more »

With gifts wrapped and under the tree, Christmas Eve came to a close. God’s goodness had been evident, but this year was different. Unfolding blankets and sheets, my husband and I created beds of the two couches in our family room. My husband’s parents, who live in town, were using our... read more »

It was really no pretense, that two thousand years ago, out of God’s love so immense, He sent us the Son we know. Above all else, beyond each Christmas, God’s best gift of love is Christ Jesus, outclassing myrrh, frankincense, and gold, and anything else we may behold. Born in a manger,... read more »