Prince Alexius, His Curse and His Crown available now in print or ebook at Amazon! Ancient Constantinople in all its beauty, grandeur, and opulence drew the young man, Basil Christopher Xavier, like a magnet. When he becomes the tutor and guardian for Prince Alexius, he feels he found his God-given calling in life. “He (Alexius) groaned and opened his eyes, reaching for my face. ‘Christo? The horses… they were grand, no?’ His eyelids, rimmed with luxuriant lashes, fell shut. … “Whether ... View the Post
Ten Seconds of Sheer Terror — Life Lessons From A Sneaker Wave
Ten seconds between life and death. It’s not very long, yet I learned important life lessons from a sneaker wave on the Oregon coast recently. Dan and I were visiting the beach to celebrate my birthday. The first morning, sunshine filtered through early morning mist on the beach. Sea gulls called their mournful cries over the sand, and the boom of the waves lured us to the water’s edge to see what we could see. I couldn’t wait to wet my toes in the salty water and feel the sea breeze lift ... View the Post
Turning Lead to Gold — 3 Strategies to Make It Work
The secret of turning lead to gold is part of the legends that make up folk lore and stories we tell children around campfires. But what if it really worked? The person who discovered this may well become another Warren Buffett or Bill Gates. It can be done, but at what cost? Turning lead to gold is one thing, but turning sorrows and troubles to joy exceeds that by far. Even better, turning evil to good is the best thing that could possibly be done on planet earth. Can it be done? How? It ... View the Post
Cotton Candy Promises — Seven Sure-Fire Ways to Succeed With New Years Resolutions
There it lies, this brand new year, like an empty page, a new beginning, a fresh start. We often make resolutions and set goals for ourselves. We want to fill those blank pages and start on a new adventure. Every year, I dutifully record my goals. Some of them I achieve, but others I do not. These promises I make to myself become like cotton candy -- sweet to my mouth, but soon evaporated and gone, leaving me with a bitter taste. And I have a feeling I'm not alone. How can I accomplish my ... View the Post
What Did Mary Really Know? Hope for Your Desperate Journeys
How can we obey God despite difficult circumstances? Maybe we should ask Mary. But what did she know? She knew she was bearing the Son of God in her womb, she knew ridicule and misunderstanding from almost everyone, and she knew joy. The kind of joy that comes through obedience to God's revealed will. We all have journeys that are difficult. What got Mary through and what can we learn from her story? It's not an easy journey from Nazareth to Bethlehem. Especially when you're pregnant. I ... View the Post
How to Be A Horrible Leader — Lessons from A Confused Turkey
Sometimes I blow it when I try to lead -- whether it's with my own children or grand-children, the kids in my Awana group, or the staff of volunteers for our VBS program. But one day I learned some valuable leadership lessons from an unusual source -- a hen turkey. "Come on, you lazy chicks! Get out of bed! We have a lot to do today." Mrs. Turkey scolded, prodded, and threatened her chicks, but they remained obdurate, squeaking in the most annoying fashion as they huddled close together in ... View the Post
