Medieval Peasants Had More Vacation Time than Many of Us

Life for a medieval peasant was no picnic. His life was shadowed by fear of famine, disease, and bursts of warfare. But you might envy him for one ...

Expert Calculates Santa's Christmas Eve Workload

Some people will have a stressful load this Christmas season. Take Santa, for instance. Phillip Bump, a technology writer for The Atlantic, has attempted ...

Visit to Homeless Shelter Teaches Woman a Lesson in Thanks

Evelyn Bence writes an article titled "Two Kinds of Thanks”:

Spending an evening at a shelter for homeless women was not my idea, but when a ...

Even in Midst of War, German Pastor Thankful for God's Faithfulness

German pastor Martin Rinkart served in the walled town of Eilenburg during the horrors of the Thirty Years War of 1618-1648. Eilenburg became an overcrowded ...

Henri Nouwen on Being Grateful for Everything

To be grateful for the good things that happen in our lives is easy, but to be grateful for all of our lives—the good as well as the bad, the moments ...

Lee Strobel Impressed by Impoverished Family's Example

While working as a journalist for the Chicago Tribune, Lee Strobel was assigned to report on the struggles of an impoverished, inner-city family during ...

World Can't Steal the Ascension

Ascension Day is the perfect church holiday because the world can't steal it. The culture around us has quite ruined Christmas and Easter. Of course, ...

Jesus' Ascension Brings Sigh of Relief

To embrace the Ascension is to heave a sigh of relief, to give up the struggle to be God (and with it the inevitable despair at our constant failure), ...

African-American Churches Celebrate "Watch Night"

One long-standing tradition of African-American churches occurs on December 31, as worshipers gather together between 7 and 10 p.m. for what is known ...

Building the Perfect Christmas Tree

Every December, Slats Grobnik sells Christmas trees in Chicago. He tells the story of one year when he met a couple that was out on the hunt for just ...