Jan
06
2022
Grief is tough. My Dad tried to overcome his grief for the few years after his mom’s death, but many situations triggered his pain and anger. Any mention of God would cause Dad to react; he would leave the...
Jan
05
2022
Dad sat down with me in the New Year of 2018. He asked me to consider a few tasks for my life. I will be sharing these in the New Year as a form of inner resolution. We talked...
Jan
04
2022
Dad’s nickname around the house was Norman Neat or sometimes Matt Ticulous. He loved it clean, but he also loved having people over, which caused some tension for him. I like it neat as well. My house was full...
Jan
03
2022
Dad loved New Year’s Eve. He loved to clean out closets; he loved to organize and plan; he loved fresh starts. New Year’s Eve was a big event in my home. Dad had a sacred time he directed for...
Dec
31
2021
Dad loved Jesus’s response to the Pharisees. They often tried to trap Jesus. He frequently faced either/or no-win decisions by them but Jesus offers the third option. Consider, for instance, the woman caught in adultery. The religious leaders give...
Dec
30
2021
Deuteronomy 30:19 “I have set before you life and death, blessings and curses. Now choose life so that you and your children may live.” This verse was one of my Dad’s favorites. The root derivative of the word decide means to slay....
Dec
29
2021
Dad struggled with some forms of common sense—like when he accidentally shot my mom's dog (no, it did not die) while trying to warn off a woodpecker that was destroying our house. But Dad had uncommon common sense when...
Dec
28
2021
At camp, my Dad struggled to help student-athletes understand the necessity of encouragement. Then he compared it to oxygen.
Oxygen is necessary for life; the same is true of encouragement. Just like a room without oxygen steals our life, a...
Dec
24
2021
Merry Christmas to all of you at Words of Hope. I want to share this Christmas story. Tom is my father-in-law, and he and my Dad were close friends. They met many years ago when Tom invited my Dad...
Dec
23
2021
How many of our friends and family struggle with feeling alone? My Dad loved the great poet Maya Angelou who said, “We, unaccustomed to courage, exiles from delight, live coiled in shells of loneliness.” Christmas is a time many...
