How many times have you done what you genuinely believed was best for your kids or spouse—your entire motivation was their well-being—and they responded with, “Why do you hate me?” It’s excruciating to exhibit love and have the person you love respond with charges of hate. You do something for your spouse, or say something […]
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Drs. Steve and Rebecca Wilke are two dear friends who have raised two remarkable young men. Rebecca has worked on educational issues for decades and has written books for teachers. In this guest post, she talks to parents, urging those who have school children to be thoughtful about what’s happening in their community schools. Perhaps […]
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I (Patrick) have a bit of a reputation for running out of gas, perhaps because I once read an article that said gas pumps have more germs than a toilet seat. I don’t know how many germs that is, but it’s enough for me not to want to touch either one too often. Or maybe […]
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One of the most common questions I get about my book for singles, The Sacred Search, which gives a lot of advice about what to look for and what to avoid when choosing someone to marry, is “What if you can’t find a person like the one you describe?” Singles who ask this question, and […]
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Perhaps you feel crushed with the burden of providing for a family. Maybe you feel exhausted trying to please a persistently disappointed mate. It might be that you feel buried in duty, unglamorous tasks, anonymity, and the terrifying reality that when you look ahead, you don’t see anything changing for a long time. You pray […]
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Throughout the nine months of our engagement, Lisa and I made many plans, as any engaged couple does. We talked about missions, family, serving God—you name it. It was an intense time, and we often prayed, “Lord, wherever you want to take us, however you want to use us, we’re all yours.” Of course, we […]
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I don’t know if anything has ever touched me as much as when my oldest daughter returned from her first year of college and explained how she got through some lonely moments. She told me she’d go into the bookstore (it was a Christian college), find one of my books, look at my picture on […]
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At first, I thought I had sprained my little finger. It hurt when I used it for anything, but I couldn’t remember the point of injury. And then I eventually realized that both little fingers felt the same way. “What a coincidence,” I thought, “but time will make them feel better.” And then they started […]
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The Roman Pantheon is truly one of the great wonders of the world. To think that it was constructed in the first century and that it took just eight years to build, without modern materials and equipment, makes it even more remarkable. If you’ve ever stood under that dome and you have a soul, it […]
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How earnestly do you want to feel close to your spouse? Enough to kill something for it? “Anna’s” dad was an alcoholic, in the worst sort of way. Many noble people fight against this addiction, but some—Anna’s father—never bothered to fight. He just surrendered to its allure and allowed his family to deal with the […]
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