I’ll be at Hastings Books in Alexandria, LA today from 2-4 PM. If you’re in the area, drop by.  If not, pray that I’ll be a good witness as I greet old friends and meet new ones. Proverbs 27:17  “As iron sharpens iron, so one man sharpens another.” For most of my adult life I’ve been part of a small …

  We had a nice review of A Good Place in today’s Alexandria Town Talk.  Click here to read it. Tomorrow (March 27) from 2:00-4:00 PM I’ll be at Hastings Books in Alexandria signing copies of A Good Place and The Wayfaring Stranger. Come by if you can. Also send a message to your Cenla friends about this event.   …

Proverbs 25:15    Through patience a ruler can be persuaded, and a gentle tongue can break a bone. Often, it takes time for something we desire to take place. That is where persistence pays off. Even the “powers that be” can be persuaded with consistent persistence. I once read where time and patience are two of the greatest forces not only …

We continue looking at a chapter of Proverbs daily.  Today is March22, so it’s chapter 22. The first verse of this chapter is probably my favorite in the entire 31 chapters. “A good name is to be desired above great riches.” Being given a good name, i.e. being handed the legacy of respect by our parents and forbearers, is a …

Proverbs 19:8   “He that getteth wisdom loveth his own soul.” It’s important to have a lifelong goal of learning.  As I’ve mentioned before, it’s called “a learner’s lean.” An eagerness to be “a sponge.” Soaking up new knowledge. A willingness to listen. A hunger, even a thirst, to learn. Lord, keep teaching me. I wish to be a lifetime learner …

We’re working through one proverb per day corresponding to the day of the month.  Today we’re in Proverbs 18. Proverbs 18:12   “Before destruction a man’s heart is haughty, but humility comes before honor.” I’ve never noticed it before, but this is the 4-H verse.  The proverbs mentions four words that are worth looking at. Heart-  it’s the inner part of …

I climbed Croagh Patrick in March 2007 during a sleet storm.  St. Patrick is one of my heroes.  A foreigner who went to a pagan country and saw the entire nation come to Christ during his lifetime.  If you don’t know his story, read it. Here is one of my favorite passages in Proverbs 17: “The crucible for silver and …

We’re continuing looking at favorite Proverbs from the corresponding day.  March 16 means Proverbs 16 One of my favorite verses is Proverbs 16:3 Commit to the Lord whatever you do, and your plans will succeed. Whatever work we do is worthy of our best. Our first step should be to commit that work to the Lord. Give it to Him. …

Proverbs by the Day A good Bible reading plan includes the book of Proverbs. It contains thirty-one chapters loaded with common sense,  wisdom, and insightful sayings.  By reading a chapter per day you can finish it in a month.  Then turn around and do it again. I’ve done this for years and still find nuggets of gold in Proverbs. I’ll …

The Creek named Dry Creek I live in the village/small community called Dry Creek.  The actual creek flows through our community. Oldtimers told me the original Indian name for the creek was “Beautiful Creek” and the English translation got mixed up. Regardless, this area is my home.  My first ancestors to settle on this creek were Andrew Jackson Wagnon and …

Life is a big circle. That’s one thing being middle-aged teaches you. It all comes back around sooner or later. And that’s a good thing. An Echo from the Pines Yesterday I was at one of the prettiest cemeteries in America, Lyles Cemetery.  If you’ve never visited it, it is 1.5 miles east of the Topsy-Bel Road that connects US …

I grew up in a great place – the rural South. There are so many wonderful things about a country Southern upbringing.  One of the best parts is the large extended family you grow up in.  As a small boy I had a multitude of great grandparents, grandparents, great uncles and aunts galore, cousins, and every other kin folk in …

In this excerpt from A Good Place,  12 year old Mayo is being chased by a wild bull called “Roscoe.”  I grew up in “Open Range” country where cattle roamed everywhere.  The story below is gleaned from an old family story concerning my great great uncle, Dan Iles. Climbing through another treetop, I broke off a small limb. When I …

Living in the Past But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead. –Paul in Philippians 3: 13 My current manuscript, A Spent Bullet, deals with two young Americans in 1941 who have regrets from the past. Harry, a soldier training in Louisiana, has a dark secret from his life in Milwaukee. Elizabeth, a …