Disability, disadvantage, disband, disbelief, discomfort, disconnect, and discourage. What do all of these words have in common? The answer is obvious – it’s the prefix “dis.” Enact, enable, encircle, encompass, and encourage. Likewise, “en” is the common prefix in the list. According to dictionary.com, “dis” is a Latin prefix meaning “apart, asunder, away, utterly; or having a private, […]
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“During times of universal deceit, telling the truth becomes a revolutionary act.” — George Orwell, 1984 If you’ve read the above book by Mr. Orwell, you know that the premise of the book is, what might be called, “normalized evil,” where an evil system of thinking replaces a good one. Anyone in the book who
“OMG, I’d die for an ice cream cone right about now!” “Wow, did you see the legs on that woman? I’d die to have legs like that!” “Man, I’d die to have a penthouse in Manhattan…just for a week, even.” How many times have we heard, or even expressed, sentiments like these? When they are uttered, people draw out the word
When is the last time you took the opportunity to say “Thank you” to someone for disciplining you? In my experience, such gratitude is rarely, if ever, expressed. It seems more often that a person keeps this kind of sentiment to themselves. Is it pride? I’m not sure, but whatever precludes a warranted show of
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Imagine a man who lives in a kingdom. He spends his whole life gathering string and winding it into a giant ball. At the end of his life, it is abundantly clear to him that he has created the largest, most impressive ball ever! It’s so impressive that the king himself comes down to see
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I like to play a little game with people called, “Watch this!” This may sound evil for a pastor like myself to do, but maybe I just have an odd sense of humor? In any case, it’s fun because all parties usually end up laughing at the outcome. I help ensure this by only targeting
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If you were to interview those who have been deemed the “greatest” in their respective sport, each of them would concede that perfection is impossible (except for maybe a bowler). They’d likely go on to tout incredible discipline, evidenced by long, tedious hours of practice, often over years, sometimes even decades. Still, perfection for them
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We might drive our car twenty miles per day all week without a refill. However, if we drive five hundred miles, we’ll likely run out of gas. There are two fundamental considerations to filling our gas tanks. First, we must actually take the time to fill it (dah!). Second, a full tank of gas will
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I’ve been thinking about these school shootings I hear about on the news… Jesus Christ is the divine originator of life. Chew on that for a moment. Consider why those without Him are wretches, even preferring murderers over the “Prince of life.” But you disowned the Holy and Righteous One and asked for a murderer to
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Being present. Why is that so difficult? Is anyone actually “there” anymore when they are conversing with another? Go to the local fast food restaurant and watch how people, families even, treat each other. Their actions say, “You’re not worth my full attention, so I’ll offer you an occasional acknowledgement, either verbally or visually, so
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