Prodigal Magazine

Simple Love

Thursday, October 8, 2009

Sometimes we get caught up in what serving and loving others actually means. The messages we get from books, media, Christian thought leaders and conferences tell us that to love others we need to have some exotic adventure to a third world country to feed children or sacrifice the American life to live amongst the poor in Eastern Europe or make it our life mission to rescue women in the sex trade industry. Although all of these things are wonderful examples of loving people in Jesus' name, sometimes we get overwhelmed and just do nothing. Apathy is the real thing that gets in the way of loving others. There are opportunities everyday in our mundane lives that we can cease and surprise people with love and kindness. It is up to you to decide what to do in that moment. I decided to just sit still. Which is why I wrote this article.

When Love Means War

Sunday, September 20, 2009

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Eight years ago, September 11, 2001, America was attacked by Islamic terrorists. Shortly after, our nation went to war against those who perpetrated this evil. It has been a long and costly struggle. And today, as then, those of us who follow Jesus continually weigh that cost and wonder, “What is the Godly response to [...]

Are you truly thankful for your wife?

Tuesday, March 10, 2009

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Many men praise their wives from time to time but how selfish is that praise? Are you thankful for your wife because of all the ways that she blesses you? Are you thankful for her beauty; her home cooked meals; her funny jokes or those special times alone. It is important to be grateful for all her blessings but is that really a spirit of thankfulness? The Bible says in 1 Thessalonians 5:18, "...give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus." It does not say be thankful in all good and comfortable circumstances. If we apply this to our marriages then it means be thankful for our wives at all times. Are you thankful for your wife when she is sick? ... When she is unattractive? ...when she is depressed? ... When she is disabled? ...When she is struggling with mental illness? ...When she does not want you to touch her? ...When she is struggling with her weight?

What is Love? Baby, Don’t Hurt Me

Monday, March 9, 2009

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Yes. I just titled this article of mine after a 90's club hit by the singer Haddaway that can also be found in the SNL movie "A Night At The Roxbury" and the sketches that spawned it entitled, "The Roxbury Guys". All [slightly obscure] cultural references aside, the question "what is love?" is one that still lingers and haunts in the musings of middle-school kids and aged adults alike. Over the decades, people have had interesting, insightful and often humorous things to say about love...

ANTICIPATION – Asking God for a wife

Thursday, January 15, 2009

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I am a twenty-two year old college student who is somewhat socially awkward and I'm still trying to figure myself out in many ways. One thing I do know, however, is that I tend to over-think things just a wee bit too much. Recently, one of those over-thought topics has been marriage. Now, I know what you're thinking: "you're only twenty-two years old, what in the world are you doing thinking about marriage?" Well...you have a point. Regardless, the point of this isn't why I was thinking about it, but what I was thinking about it. Good old chivalrous tradition states that the man (myself in this case), if he intends to marry a woman, should first ask for her hand in marriage from her father. This tradition has slowly died with time, but there are a few of us who still hold to a lot of the "old-fashioned" ways. (Personally, I think asking her father is going to be a lot more intimidating than asking her. If you don't know if she wants to marry you, don't ask yet...it should be obvious what her answer is going to be.) Asking the father is more than just asking him to give away his daughter, it is asking for his blessing as well (blessing by a parent, yet another dead good tradition).

True Christianity

Wednesday, January 7, 2009

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My topic, generally speaking, is religion. Specifically my topic is Christianity. More specifically, love. Today, in the modern church, there are many ideas floating about as to what it really means to be a Christian and to live the "Christian life". Many people, and pastors, think and teach that if you are a good person and you invite people to church that you are doing your part as a good Christian.... How wrong they are.

How the Cross saved Christmas

Monday, December 29, 2008

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As a romantic, I am always thinking of ideas to be creative with my wife, Abby, yet as an idealist and with a propensity for passivity, ninety percent of those ideas never come to fruition. But, I was not going let our first Christmas together slip by without a “you’re-theonly- one-for-me” moment. There is always a slight fear in me when I step into the spontaneous, unknown world of romance. “Will she like it?” “What if it flops?” “Is it selfish?” “What if we get in bad moods and ruin it?” “Couldn’t I be more productive with this time?” “Wouldn’t it be better to go straight to bed, than waste good sleep time?” Abby is much more detail-oriented than I am. When I come up with an idea, she lovingly questions how it is really going to function. She takes care of the details of things she owns quite well, and gets upset when they are not cared for. Abby generally adopts new ideas much more quickly, if they have been primed beforehand. But this romantic idea was simple and genius, and I believed it would start a spicy, yearly Christmas tradition in our home. It would go off without a hitch! Or so I thought....