Chapter 2 In the weeks that followed, Harold Happy frequently reflected on the lessons the angel had taught his family. There seemed to be a new air of genuine contentment in the household. And an air of peace, Harold thought, “Yes, peace that passes understanding.” The school year was drawing to a close. It was time to think about a summer vacation. That evening at dinner he brought the subject up to the family. “I put in for my vacation days today at work. It looks like we will have a full two weeks in early August. That will give […]

Chapter One This tale begins as many other famous cautionary tales do – “Once upon a time.” Once upon a time there was a very ordinary man who happened to go by the name Mr. Happy. Mr. Happy had a lovely wife and two exceptional children. His wife, unsurprisingly, was named Lovely, and his two children were Strong and Pretty, though everyone knew them by their nicknames Steve and Polly. As happens so often in these tales, Mr. Happy had an unexpected adventure one afternoon. He was driving home from work, minding his own business, when he came upon an […]

We had occasion on one of our trips to England to be entertained by a vivacious and imaginative boy of five years. He wanted us to play the old fashioned, and now out of favor, card game similar to “Old Maid” or “Go Fish” called “Happy Family.” We feigned ignorance of the rules of the game and gave him free rein in guiding us through it. In startlingly adult fashion, he made up the rules as we went along, which always seemed to favor him! On a later visit, the little fellow’s grandparents patiently shepherded us around Barnstaple, Devon until […]

by Teri Ong I just read an article in the “Review” section of the Wall Street Journal (July11-12, 2020, pp. C1-2), entitled “Learning to Conquer Life’s Crises” by Bruce Feiler. Feiler expressed many thoughts, supported by anecdotes and some research, that Steve and I had long identified in the experiences of Bible personages. Chief among those ideas is that life is full of “transitions,” and if we have a mindset of just getting through transitions into “real life,” we may miss out on what “real life” really is. For the Christian, real life is living obediently in the Vine, no […]

September 7, 2020 Hell’s ice fills the skyAnd we shudder as ourNormal comforts die. Hot snow falls around;It’s eerie flakes spew forthFrom black ashen cloud. Blood red sun at noonGives faint, struggling lightThat darkens too soon. Our hearts in us quakeAs our usual life shiftsAnd solid things shake. Nature holds its breath:We’re afraid of signs andHints of coming death. We suppress our terror:It’s imaginationOr perhaps an error. But the black at noonMakes us fear we’ve seen theDark side of the moon. Such a seismic shiftMakes our blood run cold andThen recalls God’s gift, When stars, moon and sunFramed the horrible […]

By Teri Ong In Part One of this essay, I introduced the “Planned Giving Toolkit,” a new program recently rolled out Regular Baptist Ministries. It is being promoted as a means for revitalizing church ministries by getting people excited (or should I say “energized”?) about tithing on their retirement plans and/or net worth so that God will have enough money in ten years for the spread of the Gospel. Evidently, the prospect of millions of dollars coming in as the troublesome (a.k.a. “change resistant”) oldsters go out, is enough to make any congregation jump for joy as they envision having […]

By Teri Ong The current big deal in our national church association is “planned giving.” I think that term might fit G. K. Chesterton’s profile of an “evil euphemism.” It amounts to giving to a financial institution now what you might have planned to still have left at the end of retirement (which is a euphemism for “when you die”). The program is being touted as a great boon to the church over the next decade as we oldsters leave the vale of tears, and leave behind what we can’t take with us. Money, especially lots of money, is a […]

By Teri Ong Something very unexpected came in the mail this week– a Montgomery Ward mail order catalog. The brick-and-mortar Montgomery Ward store at the Greeley Mall closed its doors about 20 years ago. I didn’t know the company was still in existence. Back in the day, Wards, Sears, and Penney’s sent out two enormous seasonal catalogs, plus the famous Christmas “wish books.” The only one of the “big three” left at our mall is J.C. Penney. Sears shut down a year or two ago. Every week it seems that some retail icon is down-sizing, re-organizing, consolidating, or quitting. But […]

By Teri Ong Church revitalization ministries are intent on getting churches down to business– the business of getting people in their doors and money in their financial accounts. Some Revitalizers base their theories and their work on the model (or variations of it) propounded in the book To Dream Again. The writer charts the life cycle of the average church through to its ultimate death. In order to put off the inevitable, churches need to have “vitality” and “sustainability.” Those are code words for “people” and “money” by his own admission. Having a lot of people around provides a social […]

By Teri Ong I admit it; I am a fan of several of the series on HGTV. On rare occasions when I have access to cable TV, I sometimes binge on Fixer Uppers and Love It or List It. What always amazes me is that the list of “must haves” from family to family is pretty much the same. Everyone has to have “open concept,” or “clear line of sight,” some kind of stone counter tops, “on trend” paint colors, hardwood flooring, and whatever type of “bling” is being advertised this month in lighting, accessories, hardware, etc. Everyone needs more […]