Night Candle Meditations

In the year between March 2020 and March 2021, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) registered 96,000 deaths attributed to fentanyl overdose. The legitimate use for this powerful drug is as a narcotic analgesic used in combination with other drugs before, during, or following surgery and for chronic pain management. Illicit drug vendors soon realized that by adding small amounts of fentanyl to the drugs of choice among users, potency and effectiveness would be enhanced. Drug smugglers find a ready source for fentanyl in China. It is difficult to detect and now as consequence of open border policy, easily smuggled across our southern border. It appears that the nation's leadership has more concern about two or three parts per million of byproduct chemicals in our streams than they do about the deadly effects of drugs laced with fentanyl. This problem will be compounded with a sharp rise in deaths as a consequence of open border policy. Some may find it...

We shared more than September 11 as a birthday--we shared an abiding trust and faith in Christ. This is how I will remember Fred, my brother-in-law who now sleeps in peace until that trumpet sounds on resurrection morning. The recent stroke caught the family by surprise, but Fred appeared to sense that his time in this world was drawing to a close as he visited loved ones just weeks before his passing. Those trusting in God's promises look beyond the passing of loved ones from this world. The suffering endured is only for a little while when contrasted with the glories of eternity. Believers may claim the promise, "And the God of all grace who called you to His eternal glory in Christ after you have suffered for a little while, will Himself restore you and make you strong, firm and steadfast." 1 Peter 5:10 NIV. We know that "The ransomed of the Lord shall return and come to Zion with singing, with everlasting joy on their heads. They shall obtain joy and gladness...

In a world of affliction it is not uncommon when it touches the life of a loved one. This morning I was asked to pray for one of my grandsons who was in a hospital emergency room after an accident. A recently read Bible text came to mind as I prayed. "Be merciful to me, O God, be merciful to me! For my soul trusts in You; and in the shadow of Your wings, I will make my refuge, until these calamities have passed by." Psalm 57:1. These are words for my grandson to claim as he heals. Affliction can be a blessing when it arrests the attention, moving the soul to petition God: "Turn Yourself to me, and have mercy on me, for I am desolate and afflicted. The troubles of my heart have enlarged; bring me out of my distresses! Look at my affliction and my pain and forgive all my sins." Psalm 25:16-18. The reading of Scripture provides comfort in affliction and gives one a renewal of life. Psalm 119:50. If my grandson heeds the beckoning voice of the Holy Spirit then perha...

Do-overs are a common practice among youth as they engage with one another in neighborhood games. Amateur golfers sometimes claim a mulligan when a bad drive goes awry. It is probable that if possible, many people would like a do-over to negate a wrong act in life. It is not the minor missteps, but the mistakes having lasting impacts that are of concern. One writer's words are significant: "A wrong act can never be undone. It may be that the work of a lifetime will not recover what has been lost in a single moment of temptation or even thoughtlessness."* Consider the man Moses, forty years old and destined to become the next pharaoh of Egypt until he murdered a taskmaster who was beating a slave. Moses was forced to leave behind the royal palace grooming, years of education, and military training as he fled the certain retribution of Egyptian justice. The life he knew was over as he found a job herding sheep in the wilderness. For the next forty years Moses developed hu...