Author Archives: salooper57

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About salooper57

Husband, father, pastor, follower. I am a disciple of Jesus, learning how to do life from him. I read, write, walk, play a little guitar, enjoy my family.

The Only Place to Start

Posted on October 4, 2014 by salooper57

Some people won’t do anything until they figure out everything. If they can’t do it perfectly, they can’t – or won’t – do it at all. And so of course they do nothing. Just try telling them what the English … Continue reading →

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In praise of the widow’s mite

Posted on September 27, 2014 by salooper57

In the biblical Gospels of Mark and Luke we have the account of the widow’s mite. In this story Jesus and his disciples watch as worshipers come to place their offerings in one of thirteen trumpet-shaped offering containers located in … Continue reading →

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For heaven’s sake, take the call

Posted on September 20, 2014 by salooper57

For months a company called A.R.M. has been calling our home phone. When we see their name on caller I.D., we let it ring. We’re fed up with calls from survey-takers, fund-raisers and political haymakers. But A.R.M. is in a … Continue reading →

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There are no ordinary people

Posted on September 13, 2014 by salooper57

It is common now – among intellectuals and even among government agencies – to deny humans a nature and regard the characteristics once attributed to human nature as merely “social constructs.” Gender, for example, is now viewed by many as … Continue reading →

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More from reYOUal Posted

Posted on September 9, 2014 by salooper57

Check out the two latest titles from the Re-YOU series: The Patience of God (8/31/14) and Decisions, Decisions (9/7/14) at the link below.  <a href=”http://lockwoodchurch.org/media.php?pageID=6″&gt; </a> If you like it, check out From the Pulpit for more. And try the … Continue reading →

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Use the “show-then-tell” approach

Posted on September 6, 2014 by salooper57

If there is a rule in writing fiction, it is this: Show, don’t tell. John Updike impressed that principle on me many years ago in an essay on writing short stories. More recently, I ran across the same principle at … Continue reading →

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Making alterations: Resizing virtue to fit

Posted on August 30, 2014 by salooper57

Everyone wants to be virtuous. It’s part of our DNA. We are born pursuing a standard. We long to fit, or at least fit in. This is just as true of the felon as it is of the lawyer, of … Continue reading →

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You are worth more than you think

Posted on August 23, 2014 by salooper57

How much are you worth? That depends on who is paying the bill. A chemist could get about 50 dollars out of your body (though the cost of extracting the chemicals would be prohibitive). Airlines value a person at about … Continue reading →

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New Messages Posted

Posted on August 19, 2014 by salooper57

In July we started a new series at LCC – Re-YOU – which is all about becoming the person God made you to be. There is a process God follows in spiritual formation, and in this series we discover what … Continue reading →

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Can we forgive when we are still angry?

Posted on August 16, 2014 by salooper57

One of the great examples of forgiveness in our time comes from Corrie ten Boom, the Dutch Christian woman who, during the Second World War, was arrested by the Nazis for harboring Jews. She was imprisoned, along with her sister, … Continue reading →

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