are you ready for christmas?
I don’t know about you, but I love Christmas. I begin thinking about the perfect Christmas presents sometime around July. My decorations go up on Thanksgiving (but never before!) My favorite part of each day is moving our little mouse on the Advent calendar that was passed on to me by my mother. When the [...]
music + hope = water [#starboarders release]
![music + hope = water [#starboarders release]](http://bibledude.net/wp-content/uploads/Starboarders2-150x150.jpg)
Every once in a while I come across a band that knocks my socks off. You know the one … great music, incredible lyrics, and just all around good people. Recently, I came in contact with a band that does more than just knock my socks off. They aren’t just a band that gets together [...]
because He came, we have peace [@bibledude advent series]
![because He came, we have peace [@bibledude advent series]](http://bibledude.net/wp-content/uploads/dove-150x150.jpg)
READ Psalm 29 Ascribe to the LORD, O heavenly beings, ascribe to the LORD glory and strength. Ascribe to the LORD the glory due his name; worship the LORD in the splendor of holiness. The voice of the LORD is over the waters; the God of glory thunders, the LORD, over many waters. The voice [...]
there is hope [remembering #WorldAIDSDay]
![there is hope [remembering #WorldAIDSDay]](http://bibledude.net/wp-content/uploads/AIDS-Ribbon-150x150.jpg)
There are about 34 million people living with HIV/AIDS worldwide. Over half are women. More than 60% of those 34 million people have no idea they are living with the disease. Every hour, 205 people die from HIV/AIDS. 14% of those are children. 16.6 children have become orphaned because their parents died from HIV/AIDS. It [...]
how your shopping can help stop #humantrafficking
As Thanksgiving approaches, I’ve been spending some time reflecting on just how fortunate I am to live the life I live. I have a roof over my head, plenty of food to eat, a new baby on the way, and friends and family that love me more than I could ever imagine. And maybe most [...]
book review: deliver me from evil
Ever since I was a little girl, I would stay up late reading. Fiction was always my favorite. As I read the words on the page, I slowly left the world I was living in and become a part of the story I was reading. The characters became real to me – my new friends, [...]
freeing the captives [guest post from kathi macias]
![freeing the captives [guest post from kathi macias]](http://bibledude.net/wp-content/uploads/Trapped-150x150.jpg)
We are thrilled to feature a guest posting from Kathi Macias today. Kathi is the author of Deliver Me From Evil, the first book in the Freedom Series. The series uses fictional stories to expose the truth about modern day slavery and human trafficking, both domestically and internationally. The term “human trafficking” or “trafficking in [...]
[reasons they leave #4] the church is judgemental regarding sexuality
![[reasons they leave #4] the church is judgemental regarding sexuality](http://bibledude.net/wp-content/uploads/kiss-150x150.jpg)
Is leaving the church the same thing as leaving God? Just days ago, I received this text message from a teenager struggling with finding Christian community. God is important to her. She’s a young woman with faith much stronger than many adults. And yet she still wonders how the church and God connect. I probe [...]
movie review: the whistleblower [#humantrafficking]
![movie review: the whistleblower [#humantrafficking]](http://bibledude.net/wp-content/uploads/whistleblower-150x150.png)
Kathryn Bolkovac. It’s a name I never heard until I watched The Whistleblower. Now that I know who she is, I want to tell the world about her. She was just a normal woman. A police officer in Nebraska. Living a broken life. Trying her best to get it back together. Motivated primarily by the [...]
there’s still work to do [thoughts on the 2011 TIP and #humantrafficking]
![there's still work to do [thoughts on the 2011 TIP and #humantrafficking]](http://bibledude.net/wp-content/uploads/slavery-150x150.jpg)
Back in June, the U.S. government released it’s annual Trafficking in Persons (TIP) Report. This report ranks 184 countries based on the work they are doing to combat human trafficking. The purpose of this report is not to point fingers and place blame. Instead, it’s meant to be a diplomacy tool. A tool that highlights [...]
in our backyard [an interview with @nitabelles on #humantrafficking]
![in our backyard [an interview with @nitabelles on #humantrafficking]](http://bibledude.net/wp-content/uploads/chains-150x150.jpg)
That doesn’t happen here does it? Isn’t that mostly overseas? Recently I heard those questions as I was telling someone about my passion for helping victims of human trafficking. As I explained my desire to get more involved, they couldn’t believe I would be able to do anything without picking up and moving far away. [...]
protecting the least of these [a series on #humantrafficking]
![protecting the least of these [a series on #humantrafficking]](http://bibledude.net/wp-content/uploads/bird-cage-150x150.jpg)
Eleven years ago the United States government enacted one of the largest, most important, pieces of human-rights legislation in U.S. history. Known as the Trafficking Victims Protection Act (TVPA), it was the first federal law that sought to comprehensively address human trafficking and modern-day slavery. It not only targeted the more commonly known international aspects [...]
storydwelling [artist interview]
![storydwelling [artist interview]](http://bibledude.net/wp-content/uploads/dsc_0064-150x150.jpg)
We all love a good story, don’t we? I can remember sitting on my grandma’s lap as a very young child, listening to the words and looking at the pictures as she read me story after story. As an older child, I would frequently say, “Mommie, tell me a story.” And then there’s the time [...]
the first meeting
We walked in and looked around. I don’t think they are here yet, he said. I turned to the hostess. There will be four of us please. As she brought us to a table for four, we sat nervously. Watching through the large windows as cars drove up, we silently wondered … would they show [...]
i walked away
I said my final goodbyes and began to walk out the door. As I walked through the double glass doors, tears rolled down my face. I wanted to collapse on the cement and never leave. But I pushed forward, vowing to never look back. To move on to the new life I was beginning and [...]
the street
I lay in my bed and see the people on the street. My imagination goes wild. What might it be like to be one living on the street? To have no cool place to lay my head at night. No shelter from the storms that come. To have no privacy, no real space to call [...]
simply grace
One morning a son placed a note on the kitchen counter. It read: “Mom owes Billy 25 cents for taking out the garbage, 10 cents for cleaning off the table, and 50 cents for being good.” At lunch the mother placed a note on her son’s plate that read: “Billy owes Mother nothing for making [...]
i will not leave you orphaned
I will not leave you orphaned; I am coming to you. ~John 14:18 It’s a promise Jesus makes before he ascends to heaven. We will never be orphaned. He is coming to us. We will never be alone. To many, orphaned is a foreign word. We may hear it often but we don’t really know [...]
book review: bittersweet [thoughts on change, grace, and learning the hard way]
![book review: bittersweet [thoughts on change, grace, and learning the hard way]](http://bibledude.net/wp-content/uploads/bittersweet_cover-150x150.jpg)
There’s a theme that’s been running through my life over the last seven months or so. Books I read, music I hear, conversations I have … they all keep coming back to one thing: storytelling. I was first introduced to this book sometime back in September by a friend of a friend. Like so many [...]
how to make a local difference
Last week, the Barna Group released a new report revealing that 75% of adults believe that churches have a positive effect on their local communities. This sounds like good news, right? So why is it that church membership is dwindling? It seems that people would want to take part in this positive influence of the [...]
book review: the scent of water
Brokenness is all around us. Earthquakes, tsunamis, hurricanes, tornadoes. Prostitution, human trafficking, rape. Pornography, objectification, negative body image. Fatherlessness, divorce, orphan care, domestic violence, child abuse. Hunger, disease, drugs. Loneliness, directionless, fear of failure. We look for answers. If only we knew what caused the brokenness, we could stop it from happening. Scientific equations, expert [...]
i’m spent [a homeless experiment]
![i'm spent [a homeless experiment]](http://bibledude.net/wp-content/uploads/On-the-Outside-100x100.jpg)
Over 14 million Americans are unemployed. Now I’m one of them. My savings are gone. I’ve lost my house I’m a single parent And I’m down to my last $1,000 I’m not sure I can make it through the month… I go to find a job, but there’s nothing available in my field. It doesn’t [...]
the land of no birthdays
Happy birthday to you. Happy birthday to you. Happy birthday to you all …. Happy birthday to you! As we sang these familiar words, tears formed in the woman’s eyes. But it’s not my birthday, she said. I gently responded to her, That’s okay. Today we’re celebrating all of your birthdays! She couldn’t remember the [...]
[god in the yard] cycle: sabbath
![[god in the yard] cycle: sabbath](http://bibledude.net/wp-content/uploads/Sabbath-100x100.jpg)
I know that some say Sabbath is just about God, that it’s not about resting up to be more productive, that it should not mean “nowhere goes somewhere” because we shouldn’t be so focused on the “somewheres.” But I believe that’s exactly what Sabbath may be designed to do. ~L.L. Barkat “Honey, take a break. [...]
