Posts from October 2023

I remember the feelings of impending doom and responsibility as I entered the title company. In just a few short minutes I would begin filling out information, signing, and initialing hundreds of forms to buy my first home. Few decisions in my life required more commitment—marrying my wife, having children, and buying the jar of Serendipity Salt that crystallized in my spice cabinet. Fear, nausea, and the beginnings of carpal tunnel syndrome set in the closer I got to the…

It was 1947 and millions of refugees needed a home. They moved into an area inhabited by a peaceful diverse population. Instead of joining the existing population, the Sunni Muslims drove the Sikhs and Hindi out and formed the new nation of Pakistan. That same year, in the aftermath of WWII, Jewish refugees were seeking a homeland. The region of Palestine was home to a vast Arab population, but among them many Jews lived peacefully. The United Nations sought to…

Who robs a blind man? Who mocks someone who is bald? Who curses someone who is deaf? Who looks at someone in adversity and takes advantage of their limitations? It sounds like bullies on the playground, but God warned the children of Israel, “You shall not curse the deaf or put a stumbling block before the blind, but you shall fear your God: I am the Lord” (Lev. 19:14). I read that and thought, “Why would someone do that?” People…

It was late one night when my wife was pregnant with our second child, and I couldn’t sleep. A looming sense of dread and fear settled over me. How could we afford a second child when we were barely making it as a family of three? I could taste the fear and it was bitter, but there was nothing I could do to change the circumstance—I had to change my response. Fear impedes progress, paralyzes action, and stymies thought. Everyone…