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Why Do I Pray?

[Today’s article is provided by Conejo member, Arlene Leedy] Shortly after my husband Bill and I retired, we had the opportunity to go to a movie with my Uncle Don. My uncle had retired several years prior from Ernest and Young, a well known accounting firm...

Fully Alive!

‘The glory of God is a human being fully alive.” –Ireneaeus Tomorrow, Carrie and I will head out for Buenos Aires, Argentina where we’ll spend the next four months. Carrie will be the visiting professor for about 50 students at Pepperdine University’s Buenos Aires...

Countdown to Buenos Aires

On New Year’s Day 2026, I reached the ten-days-to-go on my countdown to sabbatical. I have been praying, preparing, and planning for this time of ministerial leave since 2022. This season of personal renewal will officially begin on Monday, January 12, when Carrie and...

Refracting the Light of Christmas

“Yet in thy dark streets shineth the everlasting light; the hopes and fears of all the years are met in thee tonight.” – Phillips Brooks Merry Christmas, one and all! We have journeyed through the season of Advent, a time of preparation, anticipation, and hope. On...

Good, But Not Safe

“We want, in fact, not so much a Father in Heaven as a grandfather in heaven – a senile benevolence who, as they say, ‘liked to see young people enjoying themselves,’ and whose plan for the universe was simply that it might be truly said at the end of each...

The Word of the Year

“A soft answer turns away wrath, but a harsh word stirs up anger.” – Proverbs 15:1 It’s that time of year again! For the past 21 years, Oxford University Press has chosen a “word of the year” based on user evidence drawn from news sources around the...

Reflections of a New Grandpa

“I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful, I know that full well.” Psalm 139:14 “Grandparenthood is one of life’s rewards for surviving your own children.” – Erma Bombeck It’s been a remarkable week. On Monday night, November...

Doxological Gratitude

“And whatever you do, in word or deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.” Colossians 3:17 Early in our marriage, Carrie and I lived for two years in Abilene, Texas. Looking back, these graduate school years are...

Is Holy Living for Losers?

Is holy living for losers? Is the Christian life for dorks who can’t do any better anyhow, bless their poor little hearts? A popular stereotype in some quarters is that sinful living is a whole lot more fun than holy living. The image portrayed is that of the godly...

Called to Community

“Real community is not homogeneity. It is the discipline and devotion of disparate people bearing with one another in the hard tasks of love.” Richard John Neuhaus Lasting relationships require hard work. Anyone who’s sustained a friendship for more than a year or two...