WAWZ-FM (Zarephath, NJ)

“I’m past my ‘use-by’ date.” My mother said this to me during a phone conversation we were having. She’s still dealing with the grief of having lost my father after nearly 62 years of marriage, leaving her alone in their big house in the country. Her purpose was clear when dad was alive. They were a team. She raised kids, my brother and me, while dad worked long hours. When he started his own business, she was his business partner; taking care of the books and answering phone calls.

God never leaves you. He never forsakes you. He never abandons you. Now that those truths are out of the way, let’s get into the nitty gritty of it all! Sometimes when God is quiet in our time of need, doubt creeps in. This is just part of being human honestly. We doubt! We second guess! We worry! But let’s think unpack this for a moment – think about the last time something really scary, stressful or hurtful happened in your life. Don’t stay there; we’re taking a journey.

My precious two-year-old niece Ofelia, is a delight! Her curly blond locks and chubby cheeks remind me of paintings of cherubs. She is smart, kind, and loving. Sometimes she comes up to family members and announces, “nice hug,” which informs us that she is coming in for a big, long hug. She is a joy to be around. I noticed in her last couple of visits that she really wants to approach our dog, Mollie.

At any given moment, I can look at two numbers on my phone. One tells me how much I have in my retirement account. Another tells me my lifetime giving to a particularly beautiful mission that helps poor people in the name of Jesus. One of those numbers goes up and sometimes down, based on the vicissitudes of the stock market. Even as it has gone up generally, I realize I’m not guaranteed to see this money. I may not live to use it.

There’s something about being a parent that never changes. It doesn’t matter if your child is five years old or twenty years old. You still want to protect their heart. Our daughter is 20, and this week she experienced one of those moments every parent wishes they could prevent. My first reaction is always to jump in and fix everything. I wanted to explain it away and make the hurt disappear. But that’s not how life works. Sometimes the people we love have to walk through painful moments.

Have you ever had the thought, “I wonder if God knows what He is doing?” You are not alone. Most of us have had that thought. Sometimes we pray for healing, but the diagnosis gets worse. The open door that we have been praying for, slams right in our face. We do the honest thing, but in the end makes our life even harder. For a while, as a pastor of a church, I believed because I was serving the Lord that life would be easy.

Before you were even a thought in your mother’s mind, God knew you completely and loved you fully. Isn’t that wild to think about? Before you existed in this world, you existed to God and He already had a plan for you. Psalm 139:13-14 says, “For you created my inmost being; you knit me together in my mother’s womb.

Right now, 16 North American cities are hosting the 2026 World Cup – the global soccer competition where nation competes against nation every 4 years. Experiencing sport like this in our own backyard is a once in a lifetime moment for soccer fans everywhere. I’ll confess, I’m a MASSIVE fan of “the beautiful game”, but I freely admit that for some, soccer may be an acquired taste.

At not even two weeks of age, baby Oakley was having major internal surgery. His young, faithful, first-time parents named him Oakley, inspired by Isaiah 61:1-3, which describes might oaks of righteousness. His parents lead worship and are always singing and playing music. The day after surgery, baby Oakley’s pain set in. He cried unconsolably until a NICU nurse turned music on and it instantly calmed him.

For those of you who made it past the title congratulations and welcome. When reading the Bible, I recognized I’m always casting myself as the Hero or the Protagonist. Do you do this? Seriously…. Why am I David and not Goliath? Why am I Esther and not Haman? Why am I Daniel or the three Hebrew Boys and not Nebuchadnezzar? Why am I Jesus with the whip and not the person whose table gets flipped over?