With the presidential primaries upon us it is a good time to ask ourselves How does God call us to treat those put in authority over us [... more]

Reflecting one day on why God values humility so highly sixteenth-century believer Teresa of Avila suddenly realized the answer ldquo It is because God is the supreme Truth and humility is the truth nothing good in us springs from ourselves Rather it comes from the waters of grace near which the soul remains like a tree planted by a river and from that Sun which gives life to our works rdquo Teresa concluded that it rsquo s by prayer that we anchor ourselves in that reality for ldquo the whole foundation of prayer is humility The more we humble ourselves [... more]

The day finally came mdash the day I realized my father wasn rsquo t indestructible As a boy I knew his strength and determination But in my early adult years he injured his back and I realized that my father was mortal after all I stayed with my parents to help my dad to the bathroom assisting him in dressing even guiding a glass of water to his mouth mdash it was humbling to him He made some initial attempts to accomplish small tasks but admitted ldquo I can rsquo t do anything without your help rdquo He eventually recovered [... more]

When Anita passed away in her sleep on her ninetieth birthday the quietness of her departure reflected the quietness of her life A widow she had been devoted to her children and grandchildren and to being a friend to younger women in church Anita wasn rsquo t particularly remarkable in talent or achievement But her deep faith in God inspired those who knew her ldquo When I don rsquo t know what to do about a problem rdquo a friend of mine said ldquo I don rsquo t think about the words of a famous preacher or author I think [... more]