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Sin—A Synopsis

Sin—A Synopsis

Sin is a word with which few are or ever have been comfortable.  Sinners, being sinners, do not like to think of themselves as wrongdoers (especially after expending a lot of energy on moral relativism, rationalizing, excusing, and explaining away their guilt).  Want proof?  Bring up sin sometime and watch the speed with which conversation dies and the formerly chatty scatter. For some, the problem is not clarity but confusion.  ‘If I admit that I’m a sinner, is that like saying I’m a bad…

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Peace Of The Best Kind

Peace Of The Best Kind

In a small municipal park opposite the Manhattan headquarters of the United Nations is a staircase on the wall of which the following is inscribed: “…they shall beat their swords into plowshares, and their spears into pruninghooks: nation shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall they learn war any more.”  The site has been called, “the Isaiah Wall” because the inscription is excerpted from the writings of the Biblical Prophet of that name (Isaiah 2 v. 4). Although the…

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The Ultimate Reality

The Ultimate Reality

This column is written as a reminder of what everyone knows will happen on a particular day in the future.  I’m not talking about Armageddon or the end of the world as we know it.  I’m not speaking of the last judgment or the second coming of Jesus Christ.  I am not referring to your death or mine (though some of these events may be related). I’m talking about the day that few have bothered to conceive, that even fewer have pondered and…

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No Greater Love

No Greater Love

Three people were having breakfast early one morning, having been awakened by a beeping noise, as insistent as it was annoying.  The fourth member of the group, somehow still asleep, had not yet arisen.  What was that sound, they wondered. “It’s getting light outside,” one observed, buttering a half-slice of toast.  “But not here in the kitchen,” muttered another.  “Why don’t you open the curtains?” The person nearest the window obliged.  The sunlight just admitted into the room illuminated a light haze hanging in the air,…

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Brace For Impact

Brace For Impact

The discovery of a previously unknown mass in deep space, whose long, erratic, elliptical orbit seemed all but certain to intersect earth’s own, triggered immediate and loud alarms.  Almost overnight it officially became an NEO (near earth object), tracked by astronomers, scientists, and governments around the world.  NASA (the U.S. National Aeronautics and Space Administration) was monitoring it, as was the fledgling U.S. Space Force.  But what was it? The profile and behavior of the phenomenon bore some resemblance to a comet, and some to…

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When Only A Lamb Will Do

When Only A Lamb Will Do

Live long enough on this lovely chunk of rock hurtling through space and you will find yourself in a jam.  Get into enough jams and sooner or later, you’ll stumble into one you can’t get out of—at least, not on your own.  In that moment, what you rely on and who you call on for help can mean the difference between survival and a really bad day for your life insurer. If you could choose a guard dog to defend you in…

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No Fond Farewells

No Fond Farewells

I once read tragic accounts of an ill-fated commercial airliner that became doomed, due to an inflight mischance of some kind, which badly damaged the tail section.  As a result, the plane lost the use of its hydraulic assists—somewhat akin to losing power steering and power brakes on a car, as it barrels down the highway.  The loss of its “boosters” severely restricted the nature and scope of the maneuvers that the aircraft could perform.  Cascading mechanical failures also made the stricken airliner…

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Are You Underdressed?

Are You Underdressed?

Successful people from all walks of life tend to be adept communicators.  The best of these learn to stir the emotions as well as the intellect.  They become skillful at simplifying complex ideas through storytelling.  These stories tap into common experiences from everyday life that establish instantaneous connection with others and serve to highlight or illustrate main ideas.   Abraham Lincoln is an acknowledged past master, as was humorist Will Rogers.  Examples abound among prominent writers, politicians, entertainers, and teachers—especially teachers.  In this category, none is so…

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Nightmares In The Daytime

Nightmares In The Daytime

As a child I suffered from occasional nightmares.  And for a period of time after each, I’d be anxious about falling asleep, for fear of having another.  This was not a clinical condition, but an experience common among children of a certain age.  I’m talking garden variety, “there’s a monster under my bed”-type stuff.  Problems, worries, a scary film, an encounter with a barking dog that suddenly lunges, all can manifest themselves in the visions produced in the subconscious, as we sleep. These nocturnal…

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What To Confess (And Why)

What To Confess (And Why)

“Confess” is an interesting and versatile word, which permeates the culture, especially in the western world.  It was used in the Roman empire and even earlier, by ancient Greece.  For those with an open mind, this word may enable and empower you to change both your life, and your destiny.  But before we delve too deeply, we had best define our terms. The root word means to admit, acknowledge, concede, or reveal.  When used in a negative context, it carries the idea of reluctance…

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