What is it about children and their selective hearing? They conveniently fail to perceive instructions or warnings they don’t like. But if a parent for some reason does not follow through with something he said he might do, there is a predictable mantra shouted:… Continue Reading “Choosing to Trust Again”
Category: Daily ChoicesTags: Anticipating, Blood oath, Commitment, Covenant, Covenantal Love, Cynic, Cynicism, Endurance, Endure, Eternal, Eternal Life, Eternity, Faith, Faithful, Faithfulness, God, God's Character, Hope, I promise, It's not over, Jesus, love, Patience, Patient, Pledge, Promise, Promise Keeper, Promises, Reliable, Renewal, Return of Christ, Take Heart, Trust, Trustworthiness, vows, Wait, Waiting
Posted on August 11, 2025
by Jeff Herringshaw
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I like to feel good. It’s a basic urge within me to chase happiness wherever I think it can be found. My country’s Declaration of Independence affirms the pursuit of it to be an inalienable right. When I imagine myself in a happy state,… Continue Reading “Choosing Something Other than Happiness”
Category: Daily ChoicesTags: Changed Perspective, Comfort, Comfortable, Cry, Delight, Delighted, Enjoy, Excited, Faith, Fruit of the Spirit, God, God's Presence, Grief, Happiness, Happy, Holy Spirit, Hope, Jesus, Joy, love, Miserable, Misery, Mourn, My Life Sucks, New Perspective, Out of Control, Peace, Perspective, Pleasurable, Pleasure, Rejoice, Relationships, Sad, Sadness, Suffer, Suffering, The Cross, Uncomfortable, Weep, Weeping
I always saw myself as a laid-back, easy-going person. That was until my first year of teaching remedial English to 8th graders in a California inner-city school. My carefully composed lesson plans were sabotaged daily by 13 and 14 year olds who derived perverse… Continue Reading “Choosing to Step Back and Wait”
Category: Daily ChoicesTags: Calmness, Composure, Cool, Endurance, Endure, Faith, Forbearance, Fortitude, Fruit of the Spirit, Grit, Hope, Jesus, Long Suffering, love, Patience, Patient, Peace, Renewal, Renewed Strength, Restraint, Serenity, Stoic, Stoicism, Suffer, Tolerance, Toleration, Wait, Wait on the Lord
Posted on July 21, 2025
by Jeff Herringshaw
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I first smoked a cigar in college. Somehow, I had managed to avoid all tobacco before that. When I joined several other film students in a project to tell a story set during a poker game, we decided our set needed to be filled… Continue Reading “Choosing What I REALLY Want”
Category: Daily ChoicesTags: Accepted, Accomplish, Accomplishments, Appetites, Attracted, Attractive, Christ, Christian, Complete, Completed, Confident, Delight, Desire, desires, Embraced, enamored, Faith, Fill me, Fill me up, Filled, Focus, Fulfilled, Fulfillment, Give it to me, Give me, God, Hope, Hunger, I need, I want, Image, Jesus, Joy, Longing, love, Loved, lust, Needs, Peace, Real Desire, Received, Satisfied, Satsifaction, Seek, Seeking, Thirst, Thought Life, Unshakable, Want, Wants
My desire as a boy was to be strong. Being verbally and physically picked on in elementary school, I became fascinated with the idea of becoming powerful. The longing to prove my strength led to a few fights and endless daydreaming of what that… Continue Reading “Choosing Strange Strength”
Category: Daily ChoicesTags: Abuse, Apathy, Benevolent, Brave, Bullied, Bully, Caring, Courage, Dominance, Dominate, Faith, fear, Firm, Firmness, forbearing, Force, Forcefulness, Forgiving, Gentle, Gentleness, Gracious, Hope, Humble, Humility, Jesus, Kind, kindhearted, Kindness, love, Loving, Meek, Meekness, Merciful, Mild, Potency, Power, Powerful, Quiet, Quiet Strength, softhearted, Steady, Strength, Strong, Sympathetic, Tender, Timid, Timidity, Tough, Toughness, Trusting God, Turn the other cheek, warmhearted, Way of Jesus, Weak, Weakness
We have just finished Holy Week, and I am still reflecting on what it all means. Resurrection Sunday morning provides some hearty food for thought, considering that the followers of Christ are promised to one day experience being resurrected with new incorruptible bodies themselves.… Continue Reading “Choosing to Trust God’s Way”
Category: Daily ChoicesTags: A different way, Big Picture, Confusion, Easter Reflection, Expectations, Faith, God is Good, God's Timing, God's Way, Holy Week, Hope, Hosanna, Jesus, Jesus Christ, Jewish King, King Jesus, King of Kings, love, Misinterpretation, Misunderstood, My Expectations, Out of the box, Palm Sunday, Riding on a Donkey, Salvation, Save Us, Short sighted, Short-term Thinking, Son of David, Spiritually blind, Trust God, Unexpected, Wisdom, Wisdom of God, Wise, Wrong Expectations, Wrong interpretation
Posted on January 27, 2025
by Jeff Herringshaw
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Don’t you hate it when you find grounds in your coffee? I am not a barista or even close to being a “coffee snob,” but I imagine there can be multiple reasons for such grit in my morning java. The most common reason I’ve… Continue Reading “Choosing My Filter”
Category: Daily ChoicesTags: Anxiety, Bitterness, Bondages, Distractions, Faith, Faith Journey, fear, Filtered, Filtered coffee, Filters, Focus, Focused, Grace, Holy Scriptures, In Christ, Jesus, lack of discipline, Mind, Negative Filters, negative outlook, Negativity, Restrictions, Scripture, Self Control, Self Discipline, shame, Spirit, Spiritual Blindness, Stuck, Thoughts, Through Christ, Truth, What is true?
Posted on January 13, 2025
by Jeff Herringshaw
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For as far back as I can remember, I have known the words to the old hymn: Amazing Grace. But the truly amazing thing is how long it has taken me to understand them. The lyrics were written by John Newton, an Anglican minister,… Continue Reading “Choosing to Accept an Unlikely Rescue”
Category: Daily ChoicesTags: Amazing Grace, Condemnation, Condemned, Damn you, Damned, Dirty Rotten Sinner, Extend Grace, Fair, Fair Play, Fairness, Faith, Forgiven, Gift, Good News, Gospel, Grace, Gracious, Humble, Humility, hymns, Jesus, John Newton, Just, Justice, Let Go, love, Nano threads, Receive Grace, Release, Released, Rescue, Rescued, Right, Salvation, Saved, Self Righteous, Self-Righteousness, Sinner, Undeserved Favor, Undeserved Gift, Unforgiven, Unforgiveness
Posted on December 23, 2024
by Jeff Herringshaw
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Christmas music! I love pretty much all of it. Both the sacred and secular songs stir something and pull me in. I find beauty (read last week’s post) in almost every melody. And while it is fun to “deck the halls,” “jingle bells,” and… Continue Reading “Choosing to Adore Him”
Category: Daily ChoicesTags: Adore Him, Advent, Away in the Manger, Baby Jesus, Carolers, Celebration, Choirs, Christmas, Christmas Carols, Christmas Day, Christmas Songs, December 25th, Emmanuel, Faith, Gifts, God With Us, Hark the Herald Angels Sing, Holiday Season, Holidays, Humility, Incarnation, Jesus, Joy, Joy to the World, Merry Christmas, O Come All Ye Faithful, Peace on Earth, Season Greetings, The Word Became Flesh, We Three Kings, What Child is This?, Worship, Yuletide
I read of her in my college literature class, Lady Elaine of Astolat. A figure in Arthurian legend, she died from the weight of unrequited love. Sir Lancelot just didn’t feel it the same way she did. Of course, dying because of or for… Continue Reading “Choosing Strange Love”
Category: Daily ChoicesTags: Death, Doubts, Faith, Feelings, Good Feelings, Happiness, Ignatius of Antioch, Jesus, Jesus' Sacrifice, Joy, Lady Elaine, love, Love Hurts, Love like Jesus, Love that Gives, Martyrs, Meaning, Perpetua and Felicity, Polycarp, Purpose, Sacrificial Death, sacrificial love, Self-centered, Sentiments, Strange Love, Suffering, Till Death do us part, True Happiness, Unrequited Love
Choose This Day 