ODJ: peace in a ravaged world


Amid the horrific stories of shootings in schools, the news in August 2013 of Antoinette Tuff’s heroism was a beautiful exception. Antoinette, on staff at a school in America, confronted 20 year old Michael Hill when he entered the school building carrying weapons, including an assault rifle. “I just started talking to him,” Tuff said, “and let him know what was going on with me and that i

ODB: Holy, Holy, Holy

“Time flies when you’re having fun.” This cliché has no basis in fact, but experience makes it seem true.When life is pleasant, time passes all too quickly. Give me a task that I enjoy, or a person whose company I love, and time seems irrelevant.My experience of this “reality” has given me a new understanding of the scene described in Revelation 4. In the past, when I considered the fou

ODJ: a stone’s throw


The teachers of the law stormed into the temple and interrupted Jesus’ teaching by thrusting a woman in front of the crowd. They said to Him, “This woman was caught in the act of adultery. The law of Moses says to stone her. What do you say?” (John 8:4-5). 


Jesus knew that if He sided with the law, they would say He was unloving; and if He went with love, they would say He deni

ODB: Finding God’s Pathway

The Channel Tunnel opened on May 6, 1994, nearly two centuries after it was first proposed in 1802 by Napoleon’s engineer, Albert Mathieu. Today the 31-mile passage beneath the English Channel allows thousands of people, cars, and trucks to travel by train each day between England and France. For centuries, people had sailed across the Channel until this surprising new way to go under it was com

ODJ: not mine


My husband and I believe that the most influential people in a child’s life are his or her parents. But we wonder at times if our parenting decisions are having the impact we hoped for. Now that our kids are adolescents, friendships no longer consist of playing with toys and learning to share. Likewise, because they’re not always within sight, our kids have more experiences on their own than w

ODB: The Upright Thumb

According to an African fable, four fingers and a thumb lived together on a hand. They were inseparable friends. One day, they noticed a gold ring lying next to them and conspired to take it. The thumb said it would be wrong to steal the ring, but the four fingers called him a self-righteous coward and refused to be his friend. That was just fine with the thumb; he wanted nothing to do with their

ODJ: reverent fear 


The ocean was churning. Massive waves were causing the huge vessel to lean from side to side. As I stood and looked out through a window, I was amazed at the power and fury of the storm. The beating of the raindrops on the metal deck matched the rapid beating of my heart as the ship was buffeted by fierce elements.


Being out on the ocean during a powerful storm provides a crash cours

ODB: Difficult People

In the book God in the Dock, author C. S. Lewis describes the kind of people we have trouble getting along with. Selfishness, anger, jealousy, or other quirks often sabotage our relationship with them. We sometimes think, Life would be much easier if we didn’t have to contend with such difficult people.Lewis then turns the tables on us by pointing out that these frustrations a

ODJ: who sinned?


God has told me why your skin cancer hasn’t been healed,” the woman said to my friend. Really? he thought. Having suffered through two failed operations to remove the cancer from his face, my friend was desperate for a reason why. “God has told me it’s one of three things,” she continued. One of three? my friend thought. Even God doesn’t know for sure? “It