In Luke 10 Jesus challenges the disciples to go out into the villages and speak truth to the people. He instructs them to go out into the villages and stay in the homes of “people of peace.” He wants the disciples to find good investments for the kingdom.

We all want to choose the best investments for our families. You have goals and want to fulfill the purpose for Jesus laid upon you. Yet uncertainty is everywhere. Markets tumble. Elections come and go. “Experts” online and on TV cause you to question investing principles that have remained for decades.

Early on in his relationship with Jesus, Thomas was committed and brave. He offered up his life to follow Jesus. But his trust and willingness to die for Jesus faded after the resurrection. He no longer believed His words and demanded proof of His wounds.

When I was 12 years old, I loved collecting and trading baseball cards more than just about anything. One of my most vivid memories from childhood is gleefully pulling out a Bo Jackson Future Stars rookie card from a pack of 1987 Topps. I bought the box of cards with my hard-earned snow-shovelling money. Life simply did not get any better than that.

My friend, Nick, shared a document with me that he and his wife, Jill, created nearly two decades prior when they got married. As they began planning their new life together, the young couple decided to pray about how they would plan out their finances.

Jim Elliot knew that one calling of his life was to reach remote people to tell them about the love of Jesus Christ. His story has been told many times and he famously said, “He is no fool who gives what he cannot keep to gain that which he cannot lose.”

Every summer, my family would make the six-hour drive from Wytheville, VA down to Chesapeake, VA to stay with my grandmother for two weeks. Grandmother was strong. She was wise. She was also very opinionated, and she made her beliefs known!

I have always admired people who live in the same house for decades. In some odd way, I think it demonstrates contentment and loyalty, even though the bond is only to a piece of real estate.

Early in my married life, we moved four times in six years as our family grew to a family of six. The opportunity to spread out into a more comfortable home was definitely a blessing to us. Now, I am glad to be finally settled into the perfect house…

A friend of mine Eric and his dad Abe owned a local Dairy Queen together. After a good conversation at the Rotary Club one day, Abe slid his business card my way so I could call him later. The back of his card included the DQ logo, his store address, and the text “One Free Blizzard, Any Size.”