By their very nature, most newspaper columns and editorials are ephemeral. They are often written in haste to meet a deadline, and what excites interest today may elicit only yawns tomorrow or the next day. This is especially true of community newspapers, whose focus is on matters of interest to a smaller, parochial readership. This book is a collection of pieces that step outside that mold. The author's broad education (four degrees, including a Ph.D. and a J.D.) and wide range of work experiences (college professor, probation officer, prosecuting attorney, professional magician, novelist, editor, publisher, and grocery-store sackboy, to name a few) have provided him with a unusual perspective from which to observe and comment on the problems and pleasures of being a sentient being on Planet Earth in the twenty-first century-and on how we got to this point in human history. Inspired by the example and encouragement of the newspaper editor who gave him his first job in journalism, the author has inflicted upon the readers of several newspapers his reflections on a broad and eclectic range of subjects, from religious and racial intolerance to UFO "sightings" and the beauty of a toad's eye. Throughout it all, the author has been motivated by one unvarying purpose-to make his readers think. Not just about last week's school board meeting or next month's municipal elections, but about ideas and issues with a shelf-life longer than that of ripe tomatoes in your grocer's produce department. Here, then, are half a hundred of those pieces, rescued from dusty newspaper "morgues" and offered to a broader audience than the unsuspecting subscribers to whom they were originally addressed. The author will be pleased if you read them, but he will have failed in his purpose unless reading them makes you think.

A study of the history and of the publications of the Alcuin Club during the first 90 years of its existence.

Christian joy is the constant awareness of the loving presence of Jesus, the Son of God, in our hearts. Advent is a time when we open our minds and hearts to search for the light of love, compassion, and peace in the Word of God. It is a time set aside for more intentional reading of the Word of God-reading that leads to personal reflection, prayer, contemplation, and humble service to others. Advent challenges us to remove the barriers of arrogance, sadness, selfishness, and greed that hinder us from welcoming Christ with joy and living in communion with him and our brothers and sisters.

--From the introduction

The true meaning of Advent and Christmas finds its voice in Joyful Meditations for Every Day of Advent and the 12 Days of Christmas. From the First Sunday of Advent through Christmas and Epiphany for each liturgical year (A, B, and C), this book will help prepare for and deepen our experience this holy season.

Opening each daily reflection is a Scripture quote from the day's readings. The reflection then reaches out to us in our busy lives to consider what God's Word has to offer us during the holidays. Next, a thought to ponder brings home the message for you-to really apply the reading and reflection to your life. Now say a Prayer, an offering and petition to the Lord in our anticipation of his arrival; finally a practice, a chance to change your daily routine in simple ways to bring God's love to your life this joyous season.

The Scriptures teach clearly that God desires to live in intimate fellowship and communion with mankind. He wants us to enjoy His love, peace, joy, and companionship and to rest in His redemption, experiencing the perfect harmony and contentment and fulfillment of purpose for which He created us. God's original purpose for creating mankind was simply for us to enjoy relationship with Him, the kind of fellowship that the first couple, Adam and Eve, enjoyed in the Garden of Eden, when God walked with them in the cool of the evening (Gen. 3:8).

Then, sin entered the human experience and separated all mankind from that divine fellowship. But when we place our faith in Christ's sacrifice for our sin, we are redeemed by the blood of Christ and justified in the sight of God. But that is not the end of the matter; it is only the beginning. God's intention is that we be completely restored--spirit, soul, and body--to the divine rest found in His redemption, He wants us to experience that mystery of intimate communion with our Creator/Redeemer.

In this book we will discuss four important aspects of fulfilling the deepest desire of the human heart--to know God personally and intimately in the way God's great, loving heart intended. To know the love of God that brings true heart contentment, we need to walk in the understanding of these divine principles:

The biblical basis for all prayer is resting in His redemption.

The biblical basis for all Christian living is resting in His redemption.

The biblical basis for total forgiveness is resting in His redemption.

The biblical basis for divine contentment is resting in His redemption.
Your life can be transformed when you allow Him to make them a reality to your heart. The love of God can fill your heart and make you a victorious lover of the Christ. You will be ruined for any lesser, temporal pleasure or love once you taste more deeply the wonders of resting in His redemption.