I read a story this week about a friend offering to care for a couple’s children while they went on a date. Being practical people, they decided to go grocery shopping. Returning with grocery bags, the friend said, “I thought you were going somewhere special.” The couple told the friend that what makes a date […]
Do you know how to pray, especially when something tragic hits you or your family? My mother started her journey with Alzheimer’s when she was only 59. The road she went down got worse and worse. I prayed for her every day, but often I would wonder how to pray. I have a neighbor who […]
This morning I took part in the board meeting of the Virginia United Methodist Housing Development Corporation. The Virginia United Methodist Conference has many properties providing housing to those who need assistance in securing a safe, quiet and affordable place to live. Many of the properties are for senior citizens who can’t afford a place […]
When I was the pastor at Ivey Memorial UMC, our son Marc was in Boy Scouts and was working on an Eagle project. He decided to create a worship area in the woods behind the church. Marc and the other boy scouts worked hard clearing the area, making benches to sit on and an altar […]
My father and I used to go and cut wood together. We had a chain saw but it was a David-Bradley and so old that it often broke down. We also carried a two-person crosscut saw. To tell you how long ago this was, my dad would give me a quarter and let me walk […]
When I was in college, long distance calls were expensive. I would call home once a week and look forward all week to talking to my mother and father. I was thinking about those calls home this week when I read a story about President Harry Truman. After he announced to the world that World […]
Names are amazing! What is your name? Are you named after someone? Is your name a family name? What does your name mean? My name is Tommy, but my whole name is Ernest T. Herndon, Jr. Since my father was also named Ernie and one Ernie is enough in any family, I’ve been known as […]
I went to a funeral in Manassas recently. The man was only 53 years old. He died leaving a wife and two children. And yet the funeral was amazing. The pastor and many attendees told stories about the man who died. While he was not known very far from Manassas, everyone there knew him to […]
On a recent trip to Harrisonburg, I saw a deer jump an eight-foot fence. That fence was constructed to prevent deer from jumping into the road, but apparently it wasn’t working with all deer. This deer reminded me of an impala. An impala is a member of the antelope family able to jump ten feet […]
It rained at my house on Sunday night, the first real rain in several weeks. Prior to last night’s rain, everything was very dried up. This mini-drought made me think of tumbleweeds. Tumbleweeds are rolling thistles that can grow up to six feet tall. When they dry out and are released from their roots, they […]