An Epidemic of Kindness from a BIGG Change

Last week I wrote about how the homeless in my city have inspired me. Let me tell you about someone else who has done that.

Not long ago Chris Rosati was diagnosed with ALS, also known as Lou Gehrig's disease, an illness given much press by the recent ice bucket challenge so many are taking.  It is a devastating illness. Several years ago I watched it ravage a friend’s body and end his life.

Gratitude from the Homeless

Two days ago, my wife and I bought a street newspaper, sold mostly by the homeless. On the front page where I usually see articles about the poor or inadequate housing, was a headline that read “Attitude of Gratitude.” Inside were thirty expressions of  thanksgiving mostly by those who are homeless or homeless until recently. Two things struck me: (1) It is mid-summer and not the “Thanksgiving” season. (2) You don’t expect such expressions from homeless people.

5,500 miles; 15 years

On Monday, we drove four hours for a rendezvous with our daughter and her husband. They offered two possible places for dinner. Having made our choice, we drove about seven minutes to our destination. 

"I Hear Your Prayer"

The following is a Mind Change Moment Encore

A few days ago an old friend shared with me what he had been reading from Psalm 143.  Two days later as I was encouraging another friend, I turned to the words that had been shared with me and again the power of Scripture was seen. Moved by this result, I decided to spend time every morning for a week focusing on this passage.

SBNR

SBNR--”Spiritual but not religious”--is a new category being used by pollsters as they survey religious attitudes and commitment. An article in the New York Times this week describing some of the attention this group is getting, caught my eye.

When Weakness Isn't Weak

In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groans that words cannot express (Romans 8:26).

We do not like to feel weak. We especially don’t like to feel spiritually weak, but that is exactly what we experience when we struggle to pray or do not know what to pray. As we find ourselves in spiritual weakness it not uncommon to hear from somewhere: “You just don’t measure up.” If we believe that, then we may find ourselves feeling distance from God.

7 Ways to Improve Your Prayer Life

These days the way to get eyeballs seems to be to write headlines like these real ones I just pulled off the Web:

• 15 Ways to Stay Productive over the Summer
• 20 of the Worst Marriage Proposals Ever
• 10 Ways to Find More Space at Home
• 4 Perfect Yoga Poses for the 4th of July (what?)
• 6 Snacking Habits that Could Help You Lose Weight
• 11 Tips for Writing Killer Headline Titles