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Better Get to Living by Onyx Conklin
“It’s hard to be a diamond in a rhinestone world.” That line was written by the (can I even type these words?) the late great Dolly Parton. If somehow you ended up sleeping through this month, let me let you in on a sad truth—Dolly has departed earth and gone to Heaven. Y’all (that’s the word we use in the south), this loss has messed me up. One of my music heroes has gone to be with Jesus and I’m not okay about it right now. I have been playing song after song for days just grieving the loss of this…
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Are You Like Pinocchio? By Dr. Lisa Burkhardt Worley
Do you remember the childhood story of Pinocchio? Every time he told a lie, his nose grew. It’s a story I’ve never forgotten, and I wonder if it had an early impact on my life because I have always been a truth-teller and feel betrayed when someone is less than honest with me. Just like Pinocchio’s nose, when we lie, are deceitful, or omit part of the truth, the lie grows and becomes far worse than it would have been if we had just told the truth in the first place. And lying goes against God’s holy standard for our…
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A Salty Soliloquy by Onyx Conklin
Set a guard over my mouth, Lord; keep watch over the door of my lips (Psalm 141:3). Duct tape. Yup, duct tape. If you don’t think God as Creator is brilliant, you’ve never been at the mercy of a crazy emergency in the middle of a snow storm and used duct tape to patch, seal, and hold together something you can’t go and get the proper parts for. I’m a single woman who has to resort to playing Ms. Fix-It on a regular basis. I’m telling you, duct tape fixes many things. But one thing I wish it could fix is people’s…
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It’s Not in the Bible! By Lisa Burkhardt Worley, D.Min.
Have you ever heard the phrase, “God helps those who help themselves? I’ve heard it numerous times over my lifetime, and guess what? It’s not in the Bible. God did not design us to be self-sufficient and to travel through life without community. He created marriage so two people can share life. He invented friendship so we can support each other in both the good and the bad. And God Himself should always be our go-to when we feel helpless. He is our “refuge and strength, and ever-present help in trouble” (Psalm 46:1). Even Jesus needed support when approaching the…
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Deep Calls Unto Deep by Lane Jordan Burday
Deep calls unto deep at the noise of Your waterfalls; all Your waves and bellows have gone over me. The Lord will command His lovingkindness in the daytime, and in the night His song shall be with me – a prayer to the God of my life (Psalm 42:7-8 NKJV). As I am writing this blog, I look out the long windows and see the beach. Yes, I am on vacation in one of my favorite places, where the glistening white sand goes for miles, and the foam of the waves crashes in a beautiful rhythm. The day started out…
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A Legacy of Faith by Lisa Burkhardt Worley, D.Min.
We had a wonderful visit with our son, Kyle, his wife, Bailey, and our four-year-old grandson, William, this week. It was William’s first day of Pre-K school, and we wanted to celebrate that milestone with him. To William, I am “Lele,” and my husband is “Papa.” The first night we were there, we sat down to eat, and William said, “Lele, can we pray to Jesus?” “Of course!” I responded, and we thanked Jesus for the food. Later that week, my friend Sonny Gann, an author and counselor, spoke to our 55+ Abraham and Sarah group at church about “Legacy”…
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Are Our Words Important? By Lane Jordan Burday
Reckless words pierce like a sword, but the tongue of the wise brings healing (Proverbs 12:18). I am sure you could reflect over your life and remember times when words were thrown at you that hurt, as if a sword had cut into your heart. We can remember these times because they really do hurt. We’ve all heard the expression, “Sticks and stones may break my bones, but words will never hurt me.” This traditional children’s rhyme was used as a defense when others were mean. But words can cause real damage. Cruel words can leave deep emotional scars. But…
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Is AI Ethical? By Lisa Burkhardt Worley, D.Min.
Artificial Intelligence (AI) is now a part of our lives. When do we use it? Should we embrace it totally? As a Christian content producer, is it right to use AI to do my work, or does that take the creativity and inspiration from God out of it? I have asked these questions lately, and what I have determined is that we should never use AI to replace the Holy Spirit or God’s divine wisdom, whether it is in writing blogs like this one, Christian books, sermons, or Christian music. These works should be Holy Spirit-inspired, and we should not…
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Do You Love Life? By Lane Jordan Burday
You make known to me the path of life; You will fill me with joy in Your presence, with eternal pleasures at Your right hand (Psalm 16:11) There is a famous saying about life’s desperation: “The mass of men lead lives of quiet desperation,” written by Henry David Thoreau in his 1854 book Walden. Another common idiom is “Desperate times call for desperate measures.” When I read these, I want to cry. These thoughts make life seem so sad! It sounds like people hide their pain behind daily routines and work, and most accept a boring or hard life instead…
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God Meets Us in the Valley by Lisa Burkhardt Worley, D.Min.
Ending up in an emotional valley is never desired, but it occasionally happens, and when we find ourselves in the pit, we might think we will never get out. However, be assured the LORD meets us in the valley and does not leave us alone there. Psalm 84: 5-7 says, Blessed are those whose strength is in you, whose hearts are set on pilgrimage. As they pass through the Valley of Baka, they make it a place of springs; the autumn rains also cover it with pools. They go from strength to strength, till each appears before God in Zion. What is the…
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No Electricity! By Lane Jordan Burday
My husband and I had just driven the four-and-a-half hours for our monthly visit with our precious grandson, who is two. Our son-in-law cooked a great dinner, and after the baby was in bed, we relaxed in the family room talking and catching up. Then my daughter informed us that they received a message from their HOA that the electricity would be cut off the next day for 6-7 hours. What? For those of you who do not live in Texas, the July and August heat is rough. How would we endure with no air conditioning? How would we prepare…
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Three Ways to Stay Calm and Focused by Lisa Burkhardt Worley, D.Min.
Yikes! I am teaching a college class for the first time in my life, and my completed syllabus was due on Monday. Adding to the difficulty was learning the school’s online system before uploading the syllabus. With the clock ticking and other scenarios hovering, I had to figure out how to stay calm and focused on this task. Isaiah 26:3 promises, You will keep him in perfect peace, Whose mind is stayed on You, Because he trusts in You (NKJV). So the first way to stay calm and focused is to give the project to God. And that’s what I did. I knew that the LORD had…
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Holy Frustration by Onyx Conklin
“But if I say, “I will not mention his wordor speak anymore in his name,”his word is in my heart like a fire,a fire shut up in my bones.I am weary of holding it in;indeed, I cannot.” (Jeremiah 20:9) AAAAAAAHHHH!!!! I bet you didn’t think this blog was going to start out with a markedly loud sound of frustration but hey, you likely have your moments too. One thing I always want to bring to the table is authenticity. If you meet me in person, you’ll notice right away that I am extroverted, excited all the time, I love people,…
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What a Creator We Have! By Lane Jordan Burday
“He has made everything beautiful in its time. Also, he has put eternity into man’s mind…” (Ecclesiastes 3:11) I just got home from a two-week vacation to Alaska. It is so beautiful; there are no words to fully describe it. I have lived in Colorado, so I already know how fabulous mountains are. But in Alaska, there are so many mountains and so much space! It goes on and on, beauty upon beauty. There also aren’t very many towns, and the ones we visited are very small. A good part of the summer workforce is just seasonal, but I talked…
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What To Do When You Need an Answer? By Lisa Burkhardt Worley, D.Min.
What should we do when we don’t know what to do? There have been many times in my life—current day included—where I am perplexed about the correct way to handle a situation. I can feel confused, not knowing what decision to make or which way to turn. But we can learn from biblical history. We should remember the Israelites, who, when being pursued by the Egyptian army, faced a Red Sea roadblock. Yet, they escaped the approaching army when God supernaturally parted the Red Sea. Then Moses stretched out his hand over the sea; and the Lord caused the sea to go back by…
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Filled With His Love by Lisa Burkhardt Worley, D.Min.
What would we do without love? The Earth would be a sour place full of grumpy people who could never say anything nice about anyone. Aren’t you glad that God invented love and the wonderful feelings that come with it? There are many people in my life whom I love, but my heart bursts when I spend time with my grandson. He is so much fun, and I love watching him learn and grow. His hugs are more precious than the finest piece of jewelry. What or who makes your heart overflow? But our spouse, our children, and our grandchildren…
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Do You Need Directions? By Lane Jordan Burday
He leads in wisdom. He leads on straight paths (Proverbs 4:11). Do you remember in the ‘olden days’ when we had large, paper maps to show us how to drive to a new destination? And if you could fold it back the way you received it from the gas station, that was a miracle? Now we have the great invention of GPS! I don’t know how I survived without it, but I did have mounds of directions printed on paper that I would save to use again. What I love about the Lord is that He is our guide for…
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His Truth Marches On by Lisa Burkhardt Worley, D.Min.
I am one of those people who is honest to a fault. I think it’s because God desires that we be truthful, so I want to please Him by being an honest person. Proverbs 18:22 says, “Lying lips are an abomination to the Lord, but those who act faithfully are his delight.” In Proverbs 6, lying is one of the six things the LORD hates. What does this have to do with July 4th and the 250th anniversary of our nation? It’s because this country was founded on truth. The Declaration of Independence, drafted in 1776, says, “We hold these truths…
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Pray For Our Nation! By Lane Jordan Burday
If My people who are called by My name will humble themselves, and pray and see My face, and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin and heal their land (2 Chronicles 7:14). This is one of my very favorite verses in the Bible. It is an Old Testament covenant promise delivered by God to King Solomon, son of King David. It offers ancient Israel a way to stay in God’s favor: if the nation abandons its pride and repents, God will forgive them and restore their land. In the previous…
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Instrumental to the Band by Onyx Conklin
Sometimes I still get chills! I close my eyes, slide my headphones over my ears, and press play. Then at 3 minutes and 41 seconds into the song, the most marvelous sound washes over me like a tidal wave. If you grew up a child of the 80’s that epic moment belongs to the great Phil Collins as he masterfully beats the drums, and single-handedly makes the song “In The Air Tonight” one of the era’s greatest hits. For me it’s just that drum solo—the sound of it at just the right moment. I get that same feeling when I…