Denise Day Spencer

This is not quite intended to be a commercial, but it may seem that way. I’m going to talk about chiropractic care.

Are you still there?

All of my life I had never given a thought to chiropractors or what they did, probably because I didn’t know what they did. I never thought they were quacks or witch doctors; I just never knew anything about them at all–until I finally had to. Read the rest of this entry »

Another in my series of children’s sermons based on the doctrinal summaries in the Disciple’s Study Bible.

SCRIPTURE: Revelation 20:10, 14-15, 21:4

OBJECTS: a balloon filled with air and a straight pin

We talked last time about the fact that God is in control of everything, and can turn bad into good. You may still be wondering, “What about the people who do bad things? What about the devil? Does God ever punish evil?” Yes, He does. Read the rest of this entry »

Well, it’s official. Our nest is now empty. We took Clay to the University of Kentucky yesterday.

The day did not start well for me. Oh, I went for my morning walk and it was nice, as always. But afterward, when I sat on my back porch and prayed for my son, I burst into tears. I thought of how empty the house would seem when we returned from our trip that evening…and the next day…and the next. I realized that for the past 21 years I’d had at least one child living at home. Suddenly, life, as I knew it, was coming to an abrupt end. Maybe that’s why Grandma checked out when she did. We had always known she dreaded daily life without Clay. Read the rest of this entry »

Clay leaves for college in two days. The other night I dreamed about my 21-year-old Noel, now a quite-adult, married woman. But in the dream she was three, and wearing a little cotton “Care Bears” nightie. Am I having some empty nest anxiety or what?

Noel, meanwhile, has been having a recurrent dream of being mauled and eaten by a bear. I’m not sure what that says about her…

Why do people abbreviate when they write the word “cell,” as in cell phone? It’s already only got four letters! Are we really that pressed for time?

Speaking of time, Michael’s given me a book that’s supposed to help me organize my time and my work better. It’s called “Getting Things DONE: The Art of Stress-Free Productivity.” The author: David Allen. Sounds great! Only one problem. (You can see this coming, can’t you?) I’m too stressed, disorganized and overworked to make time to sit and read a book!

Another in my series of children’s sermons based on the Disciple’s Study Bible doctrinal summaries.

SCRIPTURE: Genesis 50:19-20

OBJECT: a blooming dandelion and a dandelion white with seeds (or pictures of the same)

We’ve been talking about evil. We’ve looked at the causes of evil: the devil and our own sin. We haven’t yet mentioned one very important thing that we need to understand and remember: God is always in control of everything. He is much greater than either Satan or ourselves.

Sometimes when we see the bad things people do, or the bad things that happen to them, we wonder, “Where is God? Why is He letting this happen?” It may feel to us like God has turned His back on us, or that He doesn’t have the power to take charge of the situation. But God always knows what’s happening, and He is always strong enough to take care of us. Read the rest of this entry »

I love to have pretty things growing in my yard, but I’m not much of a gardener. It takes time, and that’s something I never seem to have enough of.

My neighbor spends hours each week working in his yard. He started with absolutely nothing, and has transformed the spot into a backdrop for “The Secret Garden.” The only trouble is, I never see him actually enjoying the yard. He’s always too busy working. Read the rest of this entry »

Another in my series of children’s object lessons based on the doctrinal outlines in the Disciple’s Study Bible.

SCRIPTURE: Romans 3:10-12, 5:8

OBJECT: an apple cut in half to reveal the seeds

Last time we asked the question, “Where does evil come from?” We looked at how evil first entered the world through the devil.

That is how evil came to us at first, and Satan is still one source of evil. But he’s not the only one. Ever since Adam and Eve sinned, evil has been a part of us, too. Read the rest of this entry »