Opinion

Falling in love with… YOU!

If you’ve been living in this world for any amount of time, you likely know how common it is for us (as adult humans) to be constantly trying to “improve” or “change” ourselves. In other words, it is far less common to love yourself just as you are than it is to hate yourself and try anything possible to change. Some studies show that a whopping 85% of adults struggle to find self-love and have low self-esteem. An even more difficult statistic to hear is that by age 17, over 75% of females are unhappy with their bodies and feel pressured to change to look a certain way.
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The Upper Peninsula: Michigan’s Hidden Auto Legacy

When people think of the automotive industry in Michigan, they often focus on Detroit. After all, it is the “Motor City”. But the history of auto manufacturing is deeply intertwined with the entire state’s culture, economy, and identity, including the often-overlooked Upper Peninsula, where mining, labor, and transportation developments helped shape the industry we know today.
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The Where of Prayer

“In the end, prayer grants us the quiet confidence that we are seen, known, and loved by a God who is always present. We will see how this connects with the most performed and persistent prayer we know…” Our Father, who art in Heaven….” When we were in Chicago for twenty years, we developed close relationships.
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Letter to the Editor

VOTING…what comes to your mind when you hear the word??? The definition is simple: a formal indication of a choice between two or more candidates expressed typically through a ballot. Here are some interesting tidbits of information I’ve learned about: Paper ballots versus machines: people today think that hand counting would take TOO long…yet machines are fraught with potential fraud options (who hasn’t had computer problems??!!) Did you know that in France, they used paper ballots and got them counted in one day? In Argentina which has a population of 30 million, they also used paper ballots and got them counted in one day? ID’s: why should ID’s not be required for voting? They are required for almost 100% of anything else you do in life.
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The Way of Prayer: From Performance to Presence

“And when you pray, do not heap up empty phrases as the Gentiles do, for they think they will be heard for their many words.”(Matthew 6:7) In ancient times, Gentile prayer relied on repetition. The pagan gods were not omniscient, as Jesus highlights in Matthew 6, and didn’t know what you needed until you asked. These gods were like distracted humans with superpowers, focused on their own concerns. If you wanted their attention, you had to be the “squeaky wheel.”
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Trusting God in the Light and the Dark: Let Go of the ‘If’

One afternoon a little boy was playing outdoors. He used his mother’s broom as a horse and had a wonderful time until it was getting dark. He left the broom on the back porch. His mother was cleaning up the kitchen when she realized that her broom was missing. She asked the little boy about the broom and he told her where it was. She then asked him to please go get it. The little boy informed his mom that he was afraid of the dark and didn’t want to go out to get the broom. His mother smiled and said ‘The Lord is out there too, don’t be afraid’. The little boy opened the back door a little and said ‘Lord if you’re out there, hand me the broom’.
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Fear

What is fear?

At its most basic level, fear is your body’s “alarm system” that tries to keep you safe. It is your body’s response to the belief that something is going to harm you in some way. Whether physical or emotional, real or imagined, our bodies react in very noticeable ways to things that we are afraid of. In some cases, fear is actually helpful- if you are being chased by a bear, for instance. But when our fears keep us from experiencing life to the fullest, that is not a good thing.
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What Is God Like? What Are His Attributes?

When we talk about God and who He is, we often discuss his attributes. According to the Oxford dictionary, an attribute is “a quality or character considered to belong to or be inherent in a person or thing; a characteristic quality.” The attributes of God are descriptions of who God is in His entire essence, not pieces of God. Each of his attributes is essential to his nature, meaning that if an attribute were denied, then God would no longer be God.
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