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Say the word “curse” and most people think of casting spells, witchcraft, black magic, voodoo dolls, hexes, and jinxes. A curse is an utterance made with the ill intent to inflict misfortune, adversity, or punishment on someone by means of supernatural power, such as magic or evil spirits. Are curses real?
“Sticks and stones may break my bones, but words will never hurt me” was a common comeback when I was in grade school, but the truth is that words really can do great harm. Children generally aimed this singsong ditty at bullies, and while it is good to rise above petty insults and vindictive criticism, it’s also important to watch our own words. Actually, those...
The Western world exerts tremendous energy and spends huge amounts of money on political elections. It seems like the campaigning never stops. Since money is “the mother’s milk of politics,” there are endless fundraising events bringing in hundreds of millions of dollars or euros or pounds, or whatever is the national currency. All forms of media are used to...
It feels like bad news bombards us on every front these days. Sometimes, I mentally wince before tapping on a news app because it’s usually full of troubling headlines. The COVID-19 pandemic seems to have intensified many already existing problems, and the continual cycle of stressful news has caused increased suffering from stress, anxiety, and depression, as...
We live in trying and stressful times. Now, more than ever, we need to have hope. Today, hope is generally considered a feeling of wishing for or desiring something. Is that the kind of hope we need?
People say things like “I hope our team wins” or “I hope I get this job.” We desire these things to happen, considering our preferred outcome possible but not...
The story goes that a couple was sitting at the counter in a diner enjoying a cup of coffee when the husband nudged his wife and said, “Honey, look at that old couple at the end of the bar. Someday, that will be us.” His wife glanced in that direction and said, with some amusement, “You realize of course that what you see is a mirror at the end of the bar!” This...
In movies and songs, and as advice from actors, singers, and celebrities, we often hear the messages: “Follow your heart” and “Trust your feelings.” Some extol the supposed virtues of listening to their “sixth sense” or their “psychic intuition.” Does the fact that we feel something make it so? Is it generally a good idea to trust our feelings? Or, could doing...
The doctor's words hung lifeless in the air. Each of us gathered in the waiting room tried desperately to translate what our ears were hearing into coherent thoughts. All eyes stared about the room at faces that did not register the weight of this proclamation. Jackie was dead.
Music plays a role in countless human lives. Emotions, memories, and even spirituality can be bound up in music. God is a lover of good songs, too.
Music lovers, particularly country music, blues, and some pop or rock tunes, listen to a steady stream of sad songs with lyrics and melodies about lost love, broken relationships, conditions of poverty, and...
Many things will happen when Christ returns. One will be the resurrection of the dead. But ask yourself this: Why is it necessary to have a resurrection of the dead if dead Christians are right now in heaven?
People misread things all the time. Instructions say “do this,” but they read “do that” because they are distracted or simply misread the instruction for...