Red Alert!

Red Alert!

Red Alert! My blurry eyes popped wide open: a Crisis Group red alert hit my screen. The threat level of our regional neighbor spiked to Critical. That’s the top level for imminent military confrontation. So my mind snapped into action. The threat level of our next...
Dreamer Thanks

Dreamer Thanks

Dreamer Thanks As we approach Thanksgiving celebrations, it’s time to reflect and give thanks.Together, we’re all playing our part to fan lights in hard places into flame. However, our thanks hardly compares to the gratitude a dreamer recently expressed. He mentioned...
Please, God, let my child die before me!

Please, God, let my child die before me!

My mind reeled; my heart recoiled.  Why would a mother plead such a tragic prayer?  A friend of that mother explained.  “Her prayer is not unusual.  There are no lifelong options for mentally challenged orphans.”   She went on, “Let me share one family’s story.  When...
The Desert Within

The Desert Within

The  Desert Within… “Each one of us has a desert inside. An aching emptiness. A dry wasteland.” We sat next to a tent village overcrowded with families taking refuge from genocide. But our homeless Iraqi dreamer wasn’t just describing their agonizing...
Seared with Scars

Seared with Scars

Last summer, over 1.4 million Iraqi civilians fled for their lives across the Ninevah plain. They were halted at flash checkpoints. Ordered at gunpoint to drop every possession. To walk on empty handed. “Out of suffering have emergedthe strongest souls;the most...