The young athletes battling for Olympic gold are impressive with their show of grace and strength. But, behind the bright lights of the 2008 Beijing games are lesser–known stories much more worthy of our attention. These are also stories of grace and strength, but more importantly, of mercy, of suffering, and of sacrifice.

As I watched the Chinese and American women's gymnastics teams compete, one such story came to mind. These young gymnasts are not much older than the girl whose story I recall.

The latest "study" of male juvenile delinquency has apparently revealed to some experts that men may be genetically wired to become criminals. Based on a twelve-question survey about delinquent tendencies, and the genetics of those questioned, one can now assume the male species is damaged goods.

As United States citizens execute their democratic right to elect their next President, a true Christian should pause and ask a more fundamental question—is there a better answer?

Disaster after disaster, misery heaped upon misery—drought, fires, floods, earthquakes, wars, diseases—dominate the news these days. Does it seem as if these things are growing more intense, or is it just that they are “better reported” than ever?

The age-old debate intensifies, as the “realists” disdain the “doomsayers” and the “doomsayers” point accusatory fingers at the “realists.”

In southwest Arkansas there is a diamond mine. That's right, a genuine diamond mine. At the turn of the 20th century diamonds were mined commercially at the site, producing high-grade diamonds, mostly colored stones.

When the lode no longer yielded diamonds in sufficient quantities to be commercially feasible, the mining operation shut down. The land owner would then let folks hunt diamonds on the property for a small fee, and they got to keep whatever they found.