By JIM NICHOLS Whatever its mechanism for you, what was really occurring when you were baptized? That is, understanding that important spiritual things were happening, what were they? Here is a suggestion—actually, two suggestions. On one hand, when you were baptized, you were individually connected to God as a redeemed being. It was a point of salvation for you, a
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By JIM NICHOLS Human beings have lives of rhythms. These come in different forms including biological and behavioral. Biological rhythms include such items as heartbeats and breathing rates, which have amazing adjustable abilities such as when we climb a flight of stairs. Many of these biological rhythms are obvious and are the topic of fascinating study to biologists. Perhaps not
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By JIM NICHOLS This anecdote may step on some toes, but I will blame it on my mother. When I was growing up, she and I had a running joke or discussion about the way she sometimes read a novel. Mom was a reader. I am not sure when this realization came to me because I suspect she did not
Read moreBy JIM NICHOLS I have some quirky friends and I suspect you have some too. “Quirky” is not a derogative word here; it just identifies that these people seem to think in different patterns than I do. When they come out with some statement that is unexpected, they often cause me to think, “She’s right. I had not thought of
Read moreBy JIM NICHOLS Down the hall from my office right now is a colleague and young mother who, along with her husband, just completed the adoption of their third pre-school aged child. As expected, this process has been a complicated one. Because I know this woman and sense her skills and love, I do not doubt that this is a
Read moreBy JIM NICHOLS For a biologist, one of the most rewarding aspects of the Bible is to find an illustration that fits our discipline of science. Clearly, the Bible is not a science book, but many of the images used have an obvious parallel. Written centuries ago, they are not sophisticated science, but are common language metaphors that make perfect
Read moreBy JIM NICHOLS The local church I attend shares weekly Eucharist. The pattern, as in many churches, is to pass a communion plate containing bread and another container with individual plastic cups of wine/juice. With the onset of COVID, that pattern changed. Now, upon entering, each individual picks up a two-in-one item consisting of a small disposable cup of juice with
Read moreBy JIM NICHOLS When I was a boy, I kept falling and skinning my knee or elbow. My mother would paint it with mercurochrome and put on a Band-aid. The goal was to kill potentially infectious bacteria and to cover the wound so it could heal rapidly. The Band-aid itself was a small white strip of flexible cloth backed by
Read moreBy JIM NICHOLS It is not December and not close to Christmas, so why does this title have a seasonal ring to it? Even people who have only a passing knowledge of the Bible know a few of the most famous stories. One of those is the description of Mary and Joseph arriving in Bethlehem and having difficulty finding a
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Spirit Of Abilene 