By Danny Minton The early American Indians had a unique practice of training young braves. On the night of a boy’s thirteenth birthday, after learning hunting, scouting, and fishing skills, he was put to one final test. He was placed in a dense forest to spend the entire night alone. Until then, he had never been away from the security

By Danny Minton Once upon a time, in a small village nestled between the mountains and the sea, lived a carpenter named Graham. Graham was known throughout the village for his wisdom and unique approach to trouble. At the edge of his property stood a majestic tree, which he fondly referred to as his Trouble Tree. Every evening, after a

By Danny Minton We never know how we will react when faced with trauma in our lives. Sometimes we take it in stride and move on, while at other times we find it challenging to handle. I have faced things in my life both ways. I’m reminded of an old hymn that H.G. Spafford wrote. It was a hymn written

By Danny Minton Pearl Harbor. Mention the name and most people flash back to our history classes on the beginning of the U.S. involvement in World War II. On one of the saddest days of the war, over 2,400 Americans lost their lives due to the surprise attack by the Japanese Empire. If we’re asked the name of a ship

By Danny Minton If you can’t be a wave, be a ripple.If you can’t be a forest, be a tree.If you can’t be a rock, be a pebble;But the thing most important is to “Be.” If you can’t be a king, be a peasant.If you can’t be an “A,” then be a “Z.”For the joy after all is not lessened,If

By Danny Minton As I sat down to write this, I realized that, in a way, I do exactly what I’m saying we should be cautious about, but I do plan to refine my life to match the statement at the end of this article. It’s like looking in a mirror and seeing something about yourself that you see in

By Danny Minton On January 27, 1945, an American Superfortress B-29 bomber took off from Isely Airfield in Saipan on a bombing run to take out two aircraft factories outside Tokyo, Japan. The eleven-member crew called themselves the “Rover Boys Express,” after the popular “Rover Boy” books of the time. The navigator was Lt. Raymond “Hap” Halloran. As the planes

By Danny Minton My parents told me lots of lies growing up. They told me there was a Santa Claus, only to find out later that they were the ones leaving gifts. They told me there was an Easter Bunny, then I found out my mom was filling the basket. They told me there was a Tooth Fairy until I

By Danny Minton In 1857, Phillip Gosse penned a book entitled Omphalos. The word “Omphalos” is the Greek word for “navel.” The central point of the book centered on creation and the idea that God would have created Adam and Eve with “hair, fingernails, and even a navel.”  It was a discussion on telling the age of the Earth. The