Doug Wells

Neglect Nothing Lost

[473 words] I sort of kind of remember an episode from the Little House on the Prairie books. It was in the book about Laura’s future husband, Almanzo Wilder. In his childhood he once found a wallet lying on the ground, full of large amount of cash. If I remember right it was several hundred…

Wisdom is Obeying God

[336 words] Jonah heard the call of the Lord. “Go to the great city of Nineveh and preach against it, because its wickedness has come up before me” (Jonah 1:2). Jonah, however, made an executive decision to ignore those clear instructions. By doing so he became one of the premier Biblical examples of what not…

Responding When You Are Blessed

[199 words] How do you respond when you’re blessed? Did you respond gratefully when someone said something nice to you, or did something for you? I hope so. Picture a wife who spends two hours making a delicious meal for her husband because she wants to give him something special. The husband eats it without…

What Works Best for You?

[192 words] Let me share an interesting way to get out of conflict. You could look the other person in the eye and ask, “What works best for you?” Okay, I get this isn’t the most popular option – and that you might rather walk on hot coals than concede anything to someone who is…

What You Can’t See

[345 words] Sometimes I know when I’m in error. I’ve been around enough to know the sins that I am most tempted by. When my willpower fails and I commit one of these sins I know immediately afterward that I did wrong. God, forgive me for “the spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak”…

Empty Spaces

[396 words] Empty space gets filled. Have you never noticed this phenomenon when you move into a larger house? You think to yourself “oh, I’ll have so much room now!” But no…as time goes on various things encroach upon that space. You thought you were going to have a home office? Joke’s on you when…

Seems Right, or Actually Right?

[181 words] There are a lot of things I could tell you that you’d probably believe. How about: I went to the gym yesterday for about two hours. Just as you are about to compliment my efforts my wife walks by and says “No, he didn’t! He sat around like a bum and watched TV…

The Good Ol’ Days?

[175 words] Let’s talk about the good ‘ole days. I’m sure you’ve heard about them. Perhaps from a sentence starting with “back in my day…” And that’s followed by all kinds of things. Back in my day kids respected their parents. Back in my day you didn’t have to spend your whole paycheck on gasoline.…

Share the Cup!

[413 words] In a land far away (as in it only exists in my own mind) a certain villager was given a cup. He was told by the old, bearded man who gave it to him that anyone who drinks from this cup would be made well from whatever afflicted them. Right after saying this…

Expensive Junk and Free Treasure

[376 words] The zeal with which people will pursue the toy that their kid wants most for Christmas is astounding. Every year seems to have a new fad—a new massively hard-to-purchase toy. A few years ago it was “Shopkins” (tiny collectable rubber toys). When stores sold out parents flocked to eBay and spent thousands of…

Not As Good As It Looks

[175 words] In one of the most powerful anti-smoking ads I’ve ever seen the promises of the cigarette ads are examined. You’ll look cool. Smoking makes you independent and mysterious. But then the curtain is pulled away and a man in a wheelchair who can barely breathe says: the reality is you could end up…

A Real God Can Defend Himself

[469 words] A man named Gideon demolished an altar to Baal. As you can imagine Baal worshipers were not a huge fan of that action. People tend to take slights to their god very personally. Re-member what happen when the Ephesians accused Paul of making life difficult for their idol? They shouted for two hours…

No Cheap Repentance

[423 words] Sin has a cost. That’s a concept we should be careful not to forget. If we do committing sin becomes much less of a big deal. (At least in our own minds). I think this is a reason why Israel’s law commanded a thief to give back more than he stole. Think about…

What to Do With Treasures

[407 words] In one of Jesus’ parables a servant was handed a mina (a piece of valuable currency). There were clear instructions on what to do with it: “Put this money to work…until I come back” (Luke 19:13). Some of his fellow servants did a great job with this. They used what talent they have…

His Yoke is Light

[509 words] The commands of God are wonderful. They guide our lives and bring healing to our souls. People, however, sometimes have the bad habit of making these commands a little less enjoyable than they should be. Once the disciples were following Jesus on the Sabbath. Which is a good thing. And the Sabbath is…

For Such a Time as This

[537 words] Esther could have died. Sure, all the Jews were scheduled to die anyway but Esther could have been the first one. She did something that was illegal and went, unsummoned, to the king. The punishment for doing so was a date with the royal executioner. And why would she do such a thing,…

Do Better Than Job’s Friends

[441 words] Job had been sitting on the ground in misery. Everything had been taken from him. He showed amazing restraint after losing all his possessions. Even more incredible self-control was on display when he was told about the death of his children. Even after being afflicted with a painful illness, even after his own…

Christianity is Good for You!

[182 words] It turns out that Christianity is good for you, and good for your kids. Aren’t I Captain Obvious? Well, I suppose if you have been listening too much to certain atheists it might not be obvious. Richard Dawkins has claimed teaching children to accept their parent’s religion is child abuse, and suggests it’s…

Take the Harder Road

[464 words] Building godly character is hard work. “Make every effort to add to your faith goodness; and to goodness, knowledge; and to knowledge, self-control; and to self-control, perseverance; and to perseverance, godliness; and to godliness, brotherly kindness; and to brotherly kindness, love” (2 Peter 1:5-7). Every effort is right. That’s what it takes to…

Far Reaching Consequences

[425 words] God, who alone knows the future, set the regulations for Israel’s kings long before the people asked Samuel for one. All the way back in Deuteronomy the law for the king was clearly described. The king must be an Israelite. He must not acquire many horses or go back to Egypt to get…

Stay Supplied

[386 words] There is more than one way to defeat an army. Head-on clashes with the enemy work – if you’re stronger. A sneakier approach is to cut off the enemy’s supply lines. This tactic has been used for centuries. Soldiers need food, medical supplies, and ammunition. If you can find a way to disrupt…

Be Reconciled to Your Brother

[124 words] Too many people think going to church cancels out any wrong doing in their lives. Too many think putting something in the collection plate means the rest of their lifestyle is okay. However, Jesus has something to say about that: “if you are offering your gift at the altar and there remember that…