Cuckoo Prayers

by   July 12, 2026 with No Comments

By Ashlie Miller

If you have a toddler in your life, you know they can become obsessed with almost anything. For many, it’s choo-choo trains, earth movers, cartoon characters, dinosaurs, and rocket ships, but there are plenty who have very specific fascinations with unique objects.  Just this week, I saw a video of a tiny toddler who puts his hand over his heart anytime he sees an American flag – on boxes, packages, canned items, and more (hooray for goods still made in the U.S.A.).

As a mom of five, I have ridden the waves of multiple obsessions. One of my favorites was my oldest’s discovery of cuckoo clocks. Back in the day of dial-up modems, we would often take a few minutes a day to find videos of a German clock-maker’s collection sale. My son was entranced and could identify all the parts of these clocks when he was 2 years old and didn’t mind sharing his knowledge with anyone who would listen.

He carried that obsession for several years. At one point, he started praying that God would give him one. As a one-income family keeping track of every dollar we needed, we did not seriously consider the luxury of such a clock.

One Tuesday morning at a midweek ladies’ Bible study, we were discussing prayer. I must have used this childlike prayer as an illustration of some prayers receiving a “no” for an answer. About two weeks later, a lady from that group came up to me at church saying with a knowing grin, “I have something for you. Actually, it’s for your son.” Without any sense of decorum whatsoever, I blurted, “I think I know what it is!” I am not sure why such boldness exploded from me at that moment, but she laughed and said, “I have had this cuckoo clock for years in a closet, unopened. I would like for him to have it.”

Surprised, delighted, amazed – these reactions were shared among our small family. The story is part of our family folklore – stories demonstrating God’s care and concern for the things that delight us. Since that time, our family has seen many more answers to prayer. Some have been big and others, seemingly trivial, but not to the one asking.

When was the last time you asked God for something that others would deem as trivial? If you’re above the age of 13, it may have been a long, long time. It seems we stop asking in childlike faith far too soon in life, before we even understand the beauty of the relationship with a Heavenly Father.

Life’s circumstances and troubles often leave us jaded; the world we live in may leave us pessimistic and disillusioned. Yet, if we know God as our redeeming Father, He is still there, waiting to be asked, waiting to experience the playful relationship and the childlike faith and trust that come with asking. Pray for the big things, but pray for the simpler things, too.

Celebrating & Struggling

by   July 11, 2026 with No Comments

By Doug Creamer

Celebrating and Struggling

            I hope you had some good food and some great fellowship over the 4th of July weekend. It is a special time to gather together and celebrate our great nation. It is good to slow down and connect with those who mean so much to us.

            Our family gathered at my brother’s house, where you don’t have to be family to come and enjoy. One thing that came to mind while I was enjoying our gathering was that some of our family wasn’t present. I am not talking about those who live long distances away who were unable to travel and join the festivities. I was thinking about those who are no longer with us.

            Holidays are great gathering times. We get to be together and enjoy eating great food. It can be difficult to know the family is gathering but some will not be there. We miss those who have gone ahead. There is a little hole in our hearts as we celebrate each holiday. It should remind us to hug those we have a little tighter and cause us to be more present with those who are still with us. We don’t know the future so we need to learn to appreciate the present and the gift that each person is to our gatherings.

            I wrote a column recently about celebrating good news from people who had successful surgeries. A reader wrote to remind me that not everyone has successful surgeries or receives healing. She wanted me to acknowledge that even if we bathe people in prayer, sometimes things do not turn out the way we are hoping. She is correct. Some who seek healing from God may end up facing long surgeries and painful recoveries. Others may not survive even though many have prayed for them.

            Through the difficulties and challenges we have to understand that God is sovereign and that He can do the amazing and the miraculous. Sometimes He chooses not to do it and that is something that we don’t understand. I believe sometimes God chooses to walk with us through the trials and difficulties. I think His reason is that He wants to reveal more of Himself to us. We know and understand so little about our infinite God.

            I also believe when things are going great in life very few of us seek to know God better. We don’t NEED Him because at the moment we can make it through the challenges we face without His help. It seems like it takes something big to make us realize that we really do need Him. If we experience the miraculous we will celebrate and then often return to depending on ourselves. We will often not press in to know Him in a deeper way.

            I have learned through many dark and difficult times in my life that faith in God and trusting in Him has been the only thing that has helped me make it through. Sometimes I feel His presence strongly. Other times God has sent me a good friend who has stood with me and helped me back to my feet. These friends have spoken words of life and hope and given me the courage to keep moving forward. Someone put it to me this way once. We must have God to make it through the dark and difficult times in life but sometimes we need someone with skin to help and hold us.

            I think when it comes to praying for healing, we have to determine no matter what the outcome, we land on Jesus. If He heals, praise God! If He doesn’t heal, praise God! This will ultimately teach us to live in the moment, to love and appreciate each other deeply. We will learn to express our love and appreciation for each other. We will understand that tomorrow is not guaranteed and that we need to learn to live in the moment.

            I want to encourage you to trust God in every situation. No matter what the outcome, God is in control and He has His eye on you. He has not forgotten you. He is present with you as you walk through the challenges and difficulties. He wants you to know Him in a deeper and more profound way. Some things in life are tragic and leave us broken, but He is a God who tenderly and patiently puts the pieces of our lives back together. We each play an important role in this process. Our job is to love, care for, sit with, listen, try to understand, be compassionate, and to help the person take steps to move forward. In that way we become His hands and His feet.

Contact Doug Creamer at PO Box 777, Faith, NC 28041or doug@dougcreamer.com

Loving Him

by   July 10, 2026 with No Comments

By Ed Traut

John 14:23 (Passion Translation) Jesus replied, “Loving me empowers you to obey my word. And my Father will love you so deeply that we will come to you and make you our dwelling place.

  • It is a promise – that when we love Him, we keep His commands.  Keeping His commands becomes easy and natural when we devote our lives to Him.
  • God responds to us when we choose to obey, certainly obedience is attractive to God.
  • When He comes and dwells with us and constantly present, it is such a blessing and it is as result of being constantly obedient and committed child of God.

Prayer:  Lord this is exactly what I want!  Please help me to be that person, to be that obedient and quick to respond so that You can make Your dwelling place in me.  I want so much for You to live continually in me and have Your presence in my life.  Amen.  

Ed Traut
Prophetic Life

Missing Him

by   July 8, 2026 with No Comments

By Lynna Clark

Today marks one year since losing my beloved David. God gave us two years of dating and fifty one years of marriage. Or actually it was more like fifty three years of hanging out as best friends. My heart still cracks wide open with the grief of missing him. Knowing he is with the Lord softens the pain, as in I do not sorrow as those who have no hope. And yet I sorrow. Deeply. I guess I always will. Someone wisely told me that this grief is the price of great love. So yes. I will pay that price gladly in exchange for the life we shared.

Beloved David. Oh how I miss you.

You can tell how much he loved me by the size of that corsage.

Aiming to Preserve WW2 Stories

by   July 7, 2026 with No Comments

Steve Hartman tells the story of a young man on a mission to preserve the stories of WW2 Veterans. The snippets you see let you know that there are some wonderful stories of people who served our country being saved…by this young man. What a treasure in light of our 250th celebration. ENJOY!!!

Replace Lies with Truth

by   July 6, 2026 with No Comments

Max Lucado shares how to replace those bad thoughts with better ones. We need to rid our minds of the negative and replace those thoughts with things that build and edify. If you are a gardener like me, you will understand. Listen and learn.

A Bicentennial Baby Reflects

by   July 5, 2026 with No Comments

By Ashlie Miller

I struggled to write this piece, if I am honest. Although I just squeaked in for the bicentennial year, it is not as likely that I’ll be around to see the tricentennial in 50 more years. (Wow, 50 years certainly went by faster than I thought possible. Our country really is still so young and new.)

Thinking about a piece to write for the semiquincentennial (that’s a five-dollar word) carries certain weight. How does one capture such a milestone adequately in a compressed space? Do I approach things with grimaced reflection of the many woes, ills, and discontent reflected by much of the media and society at large? Does one make amends for ancestors’ mistakes or reflect with a glorified nostalgia? There are dangers in any way one would approach it.

So, I approach it the only way I know how – with personal, honest, unapologetic reflection on how some of the Four Freedoms have affected me over the 50 years since the bicentennial.

I am thankful to have been born to parents who had the freedom to choose or not choose the religious experience that they desired. In my case, it led to a sense of peace and contentment just before a terminal illness journey that would alter what family would look like.

I’m thankful that although my father suffered delayed consequences from service to his country in a war he probably did not want to fight, he still had access to medical care. The result may not have been a cure for him but led to hopeful interventions decades later for others. My mother received provision to care for two children after he was gone. It was not luxury, but it did provide for many necessities. My mother was able to graduate from college and work, further enabling provisions that her peers in many other countries could not have enjoyed.

I had the freedom to learn in a variety of schools and be taught in ways my parents thought best. Social Security enabled my mother to make some choices about our education. I may not have had the same clothes as my schoolmates, but I had access to opportunities because of how she prioritized the money she received. Furthermore, I could learn from a Christian worldview and still worship with friends from public school thanks to many other freedoms.

I’ve traveled abroad for leisure, ministry, and to learn because I can freely visit many places domestically without having to notify a local leader or request permission. I get to enjoy the beauty of many preserved natural spaces or learn about both the good and the ugly of our nation’s past at memorials and museums. I can even learn about discoveries and artistic achievements of other countries at exhibits in our museums.

I am free to read or write almost anything I want. I have the right to praise and regard what I please or criticize and complain to my heart’s desire.

As I reflect on the past and present, I’m truly thankful.  I don’t have to let others tell me how I’m supposed to feel or think – that’s one of the freedoms I’m grateful for.  I hope you take advantage of that freedom to celebrate all that is good in this beautiful land that we call home.

Ashlie Miller, a true Tar Heel, has family roots in North Carolina dating at least as early as the 1790s. You can email her at mrs.ashliemiller@gmail.com.

Unity

by   July 4, 2026 with No Comments

By Doug Creamer

Unity

                It’s time to fire up the grill and get ready for all our Fourth of July favorites. There will be hamburgers, hot dogs and all the trimmings. Then there will be the heavy-laden dessert table filled with tempting treats. After all our stomachs are stuffed we will sit back and enjoy a grand fireworks display. My mouth is already watering and I am ready for the big day.

                My brother hosts our family gathering at his house. He has joked in recent years that he and his wife can’t downsize on their house because where would our family gather for all the major holidays? You never know who is going to be in town and who you might see at these gatherings. Sometimes neighbors and friends join the fun. Whoever is there feels like they are part of our family because we all make them feel welcome.

                This is a special year as our country celebrates 250 years. It is hard to believe that our democratic experiment has lasted for 250 years. 250 sounds old but when compared to other nations we are young. When you study our history you realize that many things have evolved over time. We have been through hard times and survived.

                One of the things one must consider on such a momentous occasion is all the men and women who have fought and given their lives so we could live in freedom. Our nation was birthed and has maintained its identity at a very high cost to so many. On this day we must stop and reflect on the high price many have paid for this great nation and have thankful hearts for their sacrifice.

                One thing that gives me pause as I consider this great nation is the media reports of polls that show a majority of us believe we are a divided nation. I have heard my own mouth say it and the thought troubles me. I do not want to believe that we are a divided nation and I want to encourage you to grab ahold of that belief. Do we all think alike? No. Do we all want the same things for our country? No. Do we have problems? Yes. Do we have differences? Yes. But I would argue these are the things that make us so great. We are a diverse and wonderful people who see our differences as strength, as something we should celebrate.

                Our diversity is what gives us the creativity that we all enjoy in the arts, theater, and music. Seeing life from different angles opens the doors to entrepreneurship. If we all thought and acted the same where would new product ideas develop? It would be a very boring existence if we were all the same. A simple example that comes to mind is in all the different foods we enjoy because people bring their culture and different traditions to our tables.

                These differences can and should be celebrated in the body of Christ. Paul writes and compares us to the various parts of the human body. He asks, can we all be an eye? Then where would hearing or smelling take place? Can the hand say to the foot, I don’t need you? How would the hand get around? We should be the example to the world around us on how we encourage and celebrate each person’s uniqueness and service in the body of Christ.

                The only caution I would suggest is that we can’t allow our diversity to diminish our unity. We are the representation of Jesus here on earth. We are His ambassadors. We need to work to present the body as one: united, standing together, fighting for each other not with each other, and believing our diversity is designed to help us fulfill our destiny. God created us to be unique but not to allow that uniqueness to separate us.

                I want to encourage you to celebrate the 250th anniversary of this great nation. Reflect on how our differences have made us a stronger and better nation. I also want to encourage you to consider the diversity you find at your local church. Celebrate how God has brought you together to serve your community in a way that will glorify Him. Consider the important part that you play in your church, your roles and responsibilities. God placed you in your congregation. He needs your uniqueness to shine brightly. He also needs you to display the unity of the fellowship of believers gathered together to bring glory to Him. Happy Birthday America! Here’s hoping you will enjoy your 4th of July celebration.

Contact Doug Creamer at PO Box 777, Faith, NC 28041or doug@dougcreamer.com

Painter’s Helper

by   July 3, 2026 with No Comments

By Roger Barbee

Painter’s Helper

The oval, green mat lies at the garage entrance of our kitchen door. It is just a regular cotton mat placed there for folks to wipe their feet if necessary before entering our home. But James Taylor, Jr., a student of mine years ago, showed me that it is more than a door mat.

During the late 1970’s Jim was a student in one of my 7th grade English classes in what was the Lower School, grades 3-8. Jim was a small boy who, like his classmates, usually followed directions, always wore his tie as loose as possible, diligently did his homework/assigned reading, and couldn’t wait for athletics at the end of his demanding academic day.

Sometime during the late spring of 1984  Jim re-entered my life, and I remember his entrance into the same classroom in which he had been a student. Grading papers, I heard the door open , and in walked Jim. Standing at the door he greeted me, looked around the room, and asked, “Has the room always been this small?”

He was graduating SSSAS that June and had been accepted to UVa. Needing a summer job he had heard that I owned a small painting company and asked if I needed any painter’s helpers. Jim was one of the best hires I ever made and each summer as an undergraduate he worked as a helper, good painter, gardener at my home, driver of paint vans, and managed everything when I was away When I would return from a trip, customers or contractors we painted for, would say, “Go away! Jim does a great job.”

During one of his earliest fall years in Charlottesville, Jim borrowed a van to use moving items. A roommate and he were building bunk beds for their room, and he wanted it to take items back to campus and to carry lumber needed for the beds. Weeks later when he returned the van he explained that the windshield had been replaced. It seems that a 2×4 had slid forward and put a small crack in the original windshield. He paid for a replacement. I told him that my insurance would have covered that accident, but Jim said, “Yea, but I broke it.”

At UVa Jim and Alice met, and after graduation they asked me to read 1 Corinthians 13, St. Paul’s great description of love, at their wedding. I read from a KJV Bible that had belonged to Rev. Emmett Hoy, the deceased and beloved headmaster of SSS when Jim was a student there. After the ceremony I gave Alice and Jim the Bible.

Jim and I always stayed in touch while Alice and he lived their shared lives in Richmond. When I worked at NCS, outside my office was a wrought iron landing and stairs that led to a flagstone patio. It was, I think, a fire escape for the original school building. On pleasant days I kept the door open that led to it and like he had in the late 70’s, Jim, one fine, spring day, just walked through the door to visit. I never asked him, a resident in Richmond, how he knew where to find me; I simply enjoyed his presence. Years later Jim sent me a video of him standing on a long extension ladder as he placed Christmas lights on their Eastern Shore home. It was a  happy reminder of where/how he had learned to safely use a tall ladder.

A year ago he called me to plan for Alice and him to stop in Woodstock for lunch on their way home.  By then he had been the CEO of a NYC firm for several years,  spoken at a SSSAS commencement, commuted to NYC from their home in Alexandria, and stayed in touch all the time. After our lunch, my wife Mary Ann rode home with Alice to show her the way to  our home, and Jim rode with me.

I had often asked Jim about his work managing a large company that owned open-air shopping malls, and he always was patient and used exact examples to illustrate his methods. In my view,  success came from his attention to detail, his compassion, and a bit of developed raw  talent, but his work ethic more than anything. For instance, on our brief ride from the Woodstock Café to our house, he shared how, if he were visiting one of the company malls to see how it was functioning and noticed a dropped receipt in the parking lot, he always picked it up. “Why, for goodness sake?” I asked. “To check its date and determine if the folks you’re paying to clean the lot are doing it right,” he explained. A CEO, it seems, is not too proud to pick up trash, at least not Jim.

When we arrived at our home, Jim and I went through the garage to enter the kitchen door. He was in front of me and as he began to open the door he glanced down at the green mat. He stopped, looked at the mat deciding that something about it was wrong and bent over to correct it. Jim then opened the door and walked once again into my life. But this for the last time.

Jim died June 14, 2026.

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