Are You a Good Neighbor?
By Andrea Johnson Several years ago my husband and I had the privilege of serving as youth pastors at a predominately African church. (We were the second White family to join.) Our pastor, Isaac Oyibo, had named the…
Pray Like You Mean It: We Often Give Up Too Easily
By Andrea Johnson A few years back one of our daughter Leslee’s friends had a six-month-old son with an aggressive, malignant brain tumor. Doctors were not giving the parents much hope. In just days little…
But What If?
By Andrea Johnson Can you imagine being one of the shepherds on guard in the middle of the night that we read about in Luke 2, trying to protect your sheep when the first…
Deserving of Honor
By Andrea Johnson I feel as if Pastor’s Appreciation Day can be a little bit like Mother’s Day, a time to sincerely honor people in our lives who are deserving of…
See Me
By Andrea Johnson There is nothing much worse than the feeling that one is alone, that no one cares. Open Bible President Randall A. Bach recently shared a story that…
Forgiveness Ain’t Easy!
By Andrea Johnson “I know I am supposed to forgive, but how do I go about it?” That’s the question I had as a young mom. Someone had betrayed my trust…
God is Still God
By Andrea Johnson I trust in God, but to be honest, it’s easier to “trust” Him when He does things the way I would. I don’t mind trusting God to provide money for…
Would You Help Someone Die?
By Andrea Johnson Flipping through television channels one night, I caught an episode of My 600-lb Life, a show about morbidly obese people (not due to medical conditions) who have come to the realization that…
Do You Believe in Santa?
By Andrea Johnson My mom told me she didn’t think I ever believed in Santa Claus. I distinctly remember as a small child tugging at her coat, asking her why…
I’ve Got Your Back
By Andrea Johnson My husband was questioning me about a text thread. I can’t remember who was involved, but it was referencing him and some minor family drama about a…