Dale Brown, former head men’s basketball coach of the LSU Tigers, is a friend of mine. He sends me quality thoughts and ideas almost every single week and has given me blanket approval to share any of it with you. Dale has always been a champion of the underdog, and was the first coach in the Southeastern Conference to include blacks on his teams. In recent days he has mounted a serious campaign to improve race relations in our country, something we must do not only because it is right…

Several weeks ago I spoke to our local Kiwanis Club, and after the customary greetings and salutations, I posed this question: Do you ever feel like God has blessed you more than you deserve? Well, I sure do and I give Him all the glory. I was blessed to have good parents who loved me, taught me right from wrong and, by example, taught me the value and importance of hard work. Let me begin our visit today by saying that in 1968 I took the Dale Carnegie Course, and…

Back in the days before I married my beautiful, talented and creative wife Janis, I had a regular, go-to-the-gym, exercise program. Now, not so much, as I seem to stay busy doing other things these days. We kid each other a good deal about this, but she says I get plenty of exercise with my current routine. Here is the reason I am sharing this with you. A few days ago a friend gave me something titled, “God’s Plan for Aging” and it helps me see her point. Now, I…

There is an old saying that I have heard all my life that goes, “You raise corn but you rear children.” This saying has helped to remind me many times over the years -- especially after I had used the wrong word -- that habits are hard to break. What brought this saying to mind was a recent encounter I had with a young boy who epitomizes what I believe to be a role model for other parents who truly care and wish to rear their children right. If you…

The “Man of The Hour” has been defined as a person who is the center of attention for a specific reason. Well, I have a good candidate for this noble honor to offer to you today -- for one hour back on January 7, 2019, immediately following the 2018-2019 National Championship football game that took place in Santa Clara, California. With millions of people tuned in from all over the world, Clemson University head football Coach Dabo Swinney gave glory to God and to Jesus Christ for their win, making…

My wife Janis is a terrific cook. In fact, she has written four cookbooks that have been sold in stores and gift shops all across the nation. Almost every week I see her with her finger on a page in one of them, selecting ingredients for a dessert or some other dish that is sure to please. We eat most of our meals at home, but because of our busy schedule we also eat out two or three times each week. Our favorite place to go here in our community…

Over the past two-plus decades since I started writing this column, and as time has passed, I have had the opportunity to think a lot about what I really believe and what is important to me. From the very beginning, and is still true today, my purpose has been to share useful information and ideas that are positive and encouraging that will bring glory to God and help you achieve greater success. When I make a decision to share something with you here, my first consideration is: Is it right…

Sometime back I read a statement that has had a tremendous impact on my thinking. The statement goes, “Be kind to unkind people, as they probably need it the most.” If you will think about this for a moment, I believe you will agree that we can’t be kind to unkind people if we are not organized, live a balanced life and are at peace with ourselves. This statement, contained in a wonderful article sent to me by a friend, was only a small part of a larger group of…

When it comes to doing business in these highly competitive times, every once in a while I hear something that just floors me. I was talking with a lady the other day who told me about a recent shopping trip to a major department store. She said when she got ready to check out at the register, she was the only one there at the time, and two female clerks were engaged in conversation. She went on to say, “I stood there for over a minute and neither clerk offered…

The famous news anchor, Walter Cronkite (1916-2009), had a famous sign-off saying that went, “And that’s the way it is: these are the events that tend to alter and illuminate our times, and you were there.” The reason I share this is because there was another event where famous people were involved, and I was there. I am talking about a recent concert at our church, where Janis and I were blessed to be in attendance. We had the famous Blackwood Brothers Quartet perform for us, and it was such…