Posts by Kyle Rye (Page 3)
THE BLESSING OF SEALING
One Christmas four wealthy brothers bought extravagant gifts for their elderly mother. One brother bought her a big house. Another installed a movie theater in that house. A third brother bought her a new Mercedes. But the fourth brother knew that their mother loved to read the Bible but couldn’t due to her poor eyesight. So, he found out about a parrot that had memorized the entire Bible and could recite every passage when instructed. That parrot, which took 12…
Background Check
Ancestry.com is the largest for-profit genealogical company in the world. It boasts access to approximately 40 billion historical records from 80 different countries of origin, has over 3 million paying subscribers, and more than 23 million people in their DNA network. User-generated content tallies to more than 131 million family trees, and subscribers have added more than 800 million photographs, scanned documents, and written stories. Needless to say, what used to be an elementary school project has now become big…
Divine Detours
When you are traveling in unfamiliar territory, and you come across a detour, it feels like a tremendous setback. It interrupts your momentum, your schedule, and, if you’re like me, your blood pressure. Detours are frustrating, stressful, and burdensome, but detours are often necessary. For example, detours are utilized when dangerous conditions are present. You may be forced to detour because a bridge is washed away or debris is obstructing the roadway. Detours are used when improvements are underway. You…
A GENTLE ATTITUDE
In aeronautic terminology, “attitude” refers to the angle of an aircraft in regard to a reference point such as the horizon. It encompasses the yaw (i.e., the left-to-right movement of an aircraft in relation to its vertical axis), pitch (i.e., the up or down tilt of the aircraft’s nose in relation to its side-to-side axis), and roll (i.e., the rotation of the wings around its front-to-back axis) of the aircraft. In simplistic terms, a plane’s attitude refers to its overall…
Are You Being Persecuted?
In 2 Timothy 3:12, Paul declared that “all who desire to live a godly life will be persecuted.” He didn’t say, “all who desire to live a godly life can be persecuted” or “all who desire to live a godly life may be persecuted.” He said, “all who desire to live a godly life will be persecuted.” That’s definitive, not speculative. That’s stated as a guarantee, not as a possibility. And, even though the type and degree of persecution can…
Emergency Alert
On Saturday, January 13, 2018, around 8:10 AM, residents and visitors of the state of Hawaii errantly received an emergency alert notification on their mobile phones which read, “BALLISTIC MISSILE THREAT INBOUND TO HAWAII. SEEK IMMEDIATE SHELTER. THIS IS NOT A DRILL.” Thirty-eight minutes later a follow-up message, canceling the original message, was finally sent which said, “There is no missile threat or danger to the State of Hawaii. Repeat. False Alarm.” Apparently, the Hawaii Emergency Management Agency was conducting…
Prisoner Exchange
On Thursday, December 8, 2022, the United States government completed a prisoner swap with Russia to secure the release of one of our nation’s premiere female athletes. Brittney Griner, a two-time Olympic gold medalist with the U.S. Women’s basketball team as well as an eight-time WNBA All-star and one-time WNBA champion with the Phoenix Mercury, had been in Russian custody since February 17, 2022, and was sentenced to nine years in prison for drug possession. She was exchanged for Viktor…
Baggage Check
Has an airline company ever lost your luggage while you were traveling? I believe there are few more frustrating experiences in this life than traveling a long distance from home only to arrive in that location and not have any of your stuff. The possibility of our luggage being lost is why many of us choose to utilize carry-on bags whenever it is feasible. The carry-on bag is a lifesaver because you can put everything in it you need for…
Blessed Are The Meek
I believe that none of the Beatitudes are less appealing to our culture than the third in which Jesus said, “Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth” (Matthew 5:5). In 1989, Nike produced a print advertisement for their Air Force One shoe line featuring future NBA Hall of Famer Charles Barkley. The caption on these ads said, “The meek may inherit the earth, but they won’t get the ball.” The underlying message of this advertisement was that…
TURN THE OTHER CHEEK
Frequently, our immediate response to being wronged is to enforce the conflict resolution process Jesus provided in Matthew 18:15-17. This strategy is biblical and useful in many situations; however, it may not always be the right starting point for dealing with an offense. Matthew 18 is not the only place in the Bible where Jesus provided conflict resolution instructions. So, before we begin employing that process, we first need to consider whether or not the issue can be overlooked because…
The Wise Foundation
The tallest building in the world since 2009 is the Burj Khalifa in Dubai. It stands at 2722 feet tall. That’s over half a mile in height! It has 160 floors and is twice as tall as the Empire State Building in New York City. That is an incredibly tall building. How is it possible that a tower so tall can stand so securely? The secret to the stability of this record-breaking building is found underground. Before upward construction began,…
Jesus Is Our Heat Shield
Most professions and organizations have their own jargon, which is a fancy word for unique and specialized terms accepted and understood within a particular field or group. For example, you may hear a lawyer say, “Objection,” while a judge responds, “Overruled.” That is legal jargon. Maybe you’ve heard a medical professional say, “Let’s check your vitals.” He or she is using medical jargon. In and of itself, jargon is not bad, but it can be confusing for those unfamiliar with…