A few times a month, I go to jail. OK, so that was just a tad misleading. To be a little more precise, I occasionally go to the local county jail to supervise visitation between the inmates and their visitors. I’m glad we could clear that up; I don’t need any nasty rumors floating around! Visits – at least in my county – take place via a video/phone system instead of face-to-face or through a plexiglass partition. In addition to allowing inmates to stay in their pod and eliminating the … [Read more...]
Generous tip leads to salvation, baptism
LEBANON – It was initially meant as a random act of kindness, but the $1,000 tip First Baptist Church, Lebanon gave Robert Marsh on a $10.74 pizza on Christmas Eve started a conversation that ultimately led to his conversion and baptism. A video posted to the church’s Facebook page that has been viewed more than 13,000 times tells the story (Search for “FBC Lebanon” in Facebook’s search bar to watch the video). “What’s the biggest tip you’ve ever received?” Matt Taylor, pastor of First … [Read more...]
‘War Room’ wins with heart, humor
Settling into my seat with my tub of popcorn and a Diet Pepsi that cost roughly half a mortgage payment, I expected “War Room” to be to an affirming, charming movie with a solidly biblical worldview. Confession: Though I respect the aims of “God’s Not Dead,” “Son of God,” “Fireproof” and the like, I thought they failed at being entertaining movies. I expected some stiff acting from “War Room,” and an admirable but predictable moral; I expected to give it a hearty “Meh.” What I didn’t expect … [Read more...]
Cards Matheny includes testimony in new book
ST. LOUIS – Spring training is here and both Cardinals fans and Royals fans are eager to see warmer weather and Opening Day arrive. But until April (and hopefully two more post-season runs), consider tiding yourself over with this easy-to-digest but still interesting book by Cardinals skipper, Mike Matheny: The Matheny Manifesto. If that name sounds familiar, it’s because it comes from a 2007 letter Matheny wrote to the parents of the little league team he managed. It went viral, with his … [Read more...]
New rifle and scope, but missing the mark
A buddy and I headed to the gun range the other day so I could show off my new rifle. I’d spent quite enough money on the rifle and scope, so I decided to save a few bucks by mounting the scope while sitting at the kitchen table instead of paying a professional to do the work. We warmed up with my buddy’s rifle, a tried-and-true beauty built from a 77-year-old German Mauser. He’s a far better marksman than I am, but I was hitting the target within 2 inches of my point-of-aim at 100 yards, … [Read more...]
‘Son of God’ biblical, but short on art
The Bible has inspired some truly masterful works of art: Michelangelo’s “Pieta,” Handel’s “Messiah” and DaVinci’s “Last Supper” are but three masterpieces that show man at his cultural pinnacle with a biblical underpinning. Sadly, biblical art has slipped a little. “Son of God,” a new theatrical release edited together from snippets of “The Bible” miniseries that aired on the History Channel last spring, doesn’t rise to Da Vinci’s standards. To be honest, it doesn’t rise to Thomas … [Read more...]