The message of the Gospel appeals to the heart — During my first college experience, I took a senior seminar in philosophy. At that time in my life, I had rejected God, and the appeal of intellectualism made me feel important. Philosophy was something scholars studied and only the really smart people could handle it. I wanted to be counted…

Let God be God and trust him — A recurring phrase haunts memories of my childhood. Growing up I had a tendency to want to do what displeased my parents, sometimes to the point of their exasperation. Whether I was trying for a real answer or just being annoying, I cannot remember, but I remember the response to…

No confusion in this definition — There’s a lot of talk about privilege these days. Most of the arguments stem from privileges no one has control over, like what parents one was born to or the color of a person’s skin. Then there is the privilege of environment or condition; some accidental and others purposeful. Either…

C.S. Lewis enhanced my perspective — Back when C.S. Lewis wrote the story of his conversion to Christianity in “Surprised by Joy,” a contemporary of his reviewed the book and basically called it boring and uninspiring. To a casual reader that may be true. If I remember correctly, the moment of conversion was described in less…

The corruption that reveals the heart’s condition — In sixth grade, an adult I respected named me “ugly.” This adult did not use the word as an adjective, but as a moniker that the boys in class quickly picked up on and added to their repertoire. For a good portion of that year, I had a different name. …