CoffeeTime Articles
Need a God with Hair on Him?
You’ve heard it…the one about the little girl who was wakened by the lightning and thunder that lit up her bedroom and made the walls shake. Trembling with fear, she shrieked for her Daddy who came running. As Daddy held her and soothed her fears, he assured her,...
Teen Learns Hard Lessons
As a young boy, I would ask my dad for permission for something I wanted. Sometimes the answer was “Yeah sure, that’ll work, go ahead.” But all too often the response I received was not exactly the answer of my dreams. Quite regularly it was “No” with a firmness in...
Make Your Plans, and Watch God Laugh
Andy was only a green twenty-year-old when he was called to his very first pastorate out in the Panhandle of Oklahoma. Located in a rural isolated community, this tiny church was accustomed to getting “newbies” as its pastor. Preacher-boys needed somewhere to learn...
Watch What You’re Grabbing, Folks
Occasionally we fix oatmeal for breakfast. Not your favorite thing to eat of a morning? Me neither. So doctor it up. Cinnamon, sugar, and raisins can make even shoe leather pretty tolerable. One morning we were busy working and talking in the kitchen together. Renie...
Funeral Set For Tuesday
Why is it so hard to put your spouse first, without expecting anything in return for your absolutely selfless kindness and generosity…sigh? (Yep, I have my tongue tucked way back in my cheek on that one.) I’m pretty sure you heard about the lady who told her husband...
Moms Do Shape The Future
On Mother’s Day, this article comes from Andy: One of my favorite memories is from the earlier years of our marriage, when our two sons were just beginning elementary school age. During those years, we often traveled in a van all over the eastern half of our country,...
I Got This!
Our family traveled a lot years ago, singing on Sunday morning in churches in another states. Back in those days, when you attended church you were expected to dress more formally than is accepted today. Therefore this entailed having to pack suits, ties, and dresses,...
Don’t Make What Isn’t Good Even Worse
Ever been caught in a situation where your say-so doesn’t carry enough weight to make a difference? When you totally disagree with the decision, but there isn’t much you can do to change what’s coming? I can hear the resounding ‘Oh Yeah!’ from every reader. So, what...
Speeding in the Fast Lane
After many years of neglecting his family, a hard-working successful salesman finally took his wife on a date. Unfortunately, very conscious of the time he was ‘wasting’, he frequently checked his watch. Fed up with his inattentiveness, she finally confronted him over...
OUR Child is Absolutely Perfect!
Some years, and quite a few Coffeetime Columns ago, we wrote an article called Hellion Alert. It was about Andy recounting a true incident of eating lunch in a restaurant where a small, undisciplined child was wreaking havoc while the mother ignored it all. When...
I Wasn’t Told- Were You?
Every Easter there I would go, racing across the yard at my parents’ home. Trying to beat my little brother to all the brightly colored eggs that were hidden everywhere. Fun – you bet. Competitive – I can still remember whining because he found more than me. Family...
Green Grass, Fences and Septic Tanks
Ever had the opportunity to spend any time on the farm or simply drive through the countryside? If so, you probably watched horses and cows grazing in pastures, and likely you have noticed something. These animals do not like to stay where they were placed by their...
Are Men Really Just That Blind?
Andy was preparing his own lunch that day. Renie wasn’t feeling well, so he was on his own. He decided he would open up a can of soup, add a few crackers, and he’d be just fine. The rest of the story, according to him… “Put soup in bowl, heat in microwave. Add...
Winter Storms, Hell and Heaven…
The weather men warned us. Over and over. An extreme Arctic front was coming, bringing harshly cold temperatures and freezing precipitation. Now, as one of our Midwest’s standing jokes indicates, we all are aware that our weather forecast can be just a little...
Andy & Renie Are Expecting!
Recently we had the opportunity to have lunch with a young newly married friend whom we haven’t seen in a few months. After the usual banter and light gossip about the lives of mutual friends, we asked about his life now that he had been a husband for a while. His...