Robert Noland – Page 19

Life with Santa

An old limerick goes like this … First, a man believes in Santa Then he doesn’t believe in Santa Next, he is Santa Until finally, he looks like Santa

As the Charlie Brown gang sings, “Christmas time is here” once again. On Wednesdays this month, I’m posting a re-edit of a series I’ve written on the Bible characters of Christmas. The first person I’ll focus on is never found in the little ceramic manger scenes. He’s never in the painted depictions of peaceful Bethlehem, […]

What’s In It for …

When praying about whether an opportunity is right and best for you as a man of God, remember this: There are no lateral moves in the Kingdom of God. And God certainly doesn’t call us backwards either. Only forward. We’re not talking about money, titles, or power, but what the decision does for the Kingdom. […]

Cosby vs Huxtable

Like so many others back in the day, our family watched The Cosby Show every week, as Cliff and Claire successfully navigated raising kids and dealing with busy careers with wit and wisdom. Everybody loved Cliff. And in re-runs until recently, still did. Over these many years, as Cosby released clean material, criticized young comedians […]

Out Through the In Door

The temptations in your life are no different from what others experience. And God is faithful. He will not allow the temptation to be more than you can stand. When you are tempted, he will show you a way out so that you can endure. — 1 Corinthians 10:13 NLT It seems like we often […]

Textbook vs Treasure

For some, having a Bible on the bookshelf is kind of like owning an archaic textbook. You’re proud you own it, wouldn’t think of throwing it away, but also wouldn’t necessarily want to pick it up to read either. It has information about God and life, but not necessarily about your life. After all, it’s […]

People vs Projects

Don’t just work hard on the project; invest in the people involved in the project. Projects never change the world; people do. Jesus endured to the end with Judas, knowing full well what he would do to Him. When anyone else would have given up on Peter, Jesus just kept pouring into him. All this is done by God, […]

Trash vs Treasure

Every single day, throughout the course of the day, we all produce trash—unwanted, unused stuff we no longer need or want. Coffee grounds, an empty water bottle, the wrapper off a protein bar, the sack and empty cup from a take-out lunch, the envelope from a bill. If we live a day, we produce trash […]

The Ultimate Neighbor

I recently watched a documentary on Mister Rogers. While I always thought he was super-cool, I don’t think I fully understood how much wisdom he had and what a godly man he was. As an ordained and degreed minister, he decided early on that his congregation was all the children in the world. Here are […]

Speak Up vs Shut Up

When should I speak up? When do I shut up? The older I get, the more I ask myself these questions. When I was much younger, I didn’t ask either question much. I just picked one, then practiced damage control as needed. I have a friend whose wife says his mouth struggles too often with […]