Author: John Willingham
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Loving like Ellie
And now faith, hope, and love abide, these three; and the greatest of these is love.”–1 Corinthians 13:13 When I was in high school, our church had a pastor named Ellie who worked primarily with teenagers. Ellie was probably in his mid 50s when he began to serve at our congregation. Since I was 14 Read more
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The Nudge
“Now the LORD came and stood there, calling as before, ‘Samuel! Samuel! And Samuel said “Speak, for your servant is listening.”–1 Samuel 3:10 Have you ever heard God speak to you? Long ago, a boy named Samuel, came to realize that the voice at bedtime was none other than the Almighty. Generations earlier, Moses stopped Read more
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Resisting the Role
“But Moses said, ‘O my Lord, please send someone else.’–Exodus 4:13 “But Ananias answered, ‘Lord, I have heard from many about this man, how much evil he has done to your saints in Jerusalem.”–Acts 9:13 Several years ago, I was eating lunch by myself in a fast-food restaurant when I overheard a conversation between two Read more
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Doing the Vermont Thing
“Do not neglect to show hospitality to strangers, for by doing that some have entertained angels without knowing it.”–Hebrews 13:2 Last summer, Lori and I took our adult children, their spouses, and our four grandchildren on a vacation to Vermont. We always enjoy visiting new places and this time found a rental near Woodstock. On Read more
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The Parts We Play
“Aaron and Hur held up his hands, one on one side, and the other on the other side.”–Exodus 17:12b Ask any minister how she or he came to that vocational path and you will hear of persons who helped them recognize a call from God. One who did that with me was Latane Smith, a member Read more
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Paying Attention to the Clues
“Then the LORD answered me and said: ‘Write the vision; make it plain on tablets, so that a runner may read it.’”-Habakkuk 2:2 A broken hip set me on the road to retirement. I had just completed a 3-mile run. After getting ready for work I was heading into the garage when I missed a step Read more