Don Loftis

When Band-Aids Are Not Enough

[231 words] Every medicine cabinet should have a supply of Band-Aids of various sizes. They are excellent for keeping small cuts and scrapes clean and making “boo-boo’s” feel better. However, Band-Aids are inadequate treatments for cancerous tumors, broken femurs, or blocked arteries. This insight is true in our personal lives as well. A smile and…

Keep On Playing

[288 words] Many of you have seen the picture of Roxanne Chalifoux, the crying piccolo player from Villanova. Just after her team had lost a three point game to underdog North Carolina State in the NCAA basketball tourney, the cameras captured her sadness on the jumbo-tron and later on national TV. I was impressed with…

How Much Are You Worth?

A few years ago, Anne Marie Helmenstine was asked what was the actual value of a human body. Utilizing her chemistry background (PhD), she listed the elements in the body and researched their 2011 market values. She concluded that the average human was worth about a dollar, and if you could tan the skin (hide),…

Easy Come, Easy Go

Most of us are astonished at the amounts of money earned by professional athletes. Despite making millions of dollars, many of these famous athletes end up declaring bankruptcy. A 2009 Sports Illustrated documentary concluded that as many as 78 percent of NFL players face financial difficulty within two years of retirement. NBA statistics were as…

Combating Consumerism

As I sat eating lunch at Subway today, my view outside reminded me how much we have come to depend on the services that are provided to us. Restaurants of all types compete to feed us tasty meals. Doctors want to improve our health, while gas stations keep our cars running. Where would we be…

Be Careful What You Say

Whoever said, “sticks and stones may break my bones, but names will never hurt me” must have been deaf. Most of us know the lasting pain that comes from a cutting criticism or a personal attack. James 3:5 compares the hurt of the tongue to a fire that can destroy a forest. Certainly not all…

Optimism in Strange Places

[283 words] The stranger approached an elderly lady wearing a faded old dress and sitting under a dimly lit archway. All he knew was that he needed to buy a corsage, and the locals all called her “the flower lady.” While purchasing the flowers he commented, “My, you look happy today.” Her reply was, “I…

We Ought Not Be Surprised

[264 words] How should a preacher evaluate his sermon? More importantly, how should he evaluate his preaching ministry? Hershel York, professor of preaching at a Louisville seminary has published a guideline to address those questions. One of his tools is this question: Does the sermon divide the audience? Solid preaching leads to some amens and…

The Challenge of the Four Chaplains

[299 words] In a recent article, Phillip Morrison retold the story of four chaplains in the U.S. military who died in heroic fashion on the same day. George Fox, Alexander Goode, Clark Poling, and John Washington had just graduated from Army Chaplains School at Harvard and were headed to Europe for their first WWll assignments.…