Editor’s note: Kaylin Carlson led musical worship last Sunday at Rockford Rescue Mission. She read this personal reflection before singing Winter Snow. Maybe this season is coated with a bit of a sting. A sting from a harsh past Harsh people Harsh...
“All of humanity’s problems stem from man’s inability to sit quietly in a room alone.” —Blaise Pascal (1623–1662) In 2014, researchers from the University of Virginia tested people’s ability to … well, sit quietly in a room alone. No devices, no reading material, no...
At the end of Pastor Luke’s first sermon in our “Make Room” advent series, he challenged us to try fasting, not only from food, but from anything in our life that is dulling and numbing our senses to God. That Sunday, I made a commitment to fast from social media by...
I find it a skosh ironic that I’m the one writing on rest. I’ve been a single mother for the past seven years—with four kids—and every voicemail left on my phone starts with “I know you’re really busy, Johanna …” But God and his...
On the eve of Thanksgiving, a day when many Americans become competitive eaters, allow me to turn your attention to one Joey Chestnut. The Major League Eating website informs us: “Joey Chestnut is the greatest eater in history. … These days Joey Chestnut is truly an...
Jim Killam originally wrote this essay in 2014 for Christianity Today. On Dec. 21, 1968, 40 minutes after leaving Earth’s orbit, Apollo 8 astronauts Frank Borman, Jim Lovell, and Bill Anders fell silent. Looking back at the just-separated third stage of their Saturn V...
