Hostage Crisis Drives me to my Knees

It was hard to watch the CBS news interview with American missionaries Gracia and Martin Burnham.  The Burnhams were haggard, filthy, and appeared to be disoriented.

While on vacation, they were kidnapped by Abu Sayyaf terrorists and were being dragged through the Philippine jungle.  It had been a year since they had seen their children, and it looked as though they never would.  One of their fellow hostages had been beheaded.

Their captors had given a journalist rare access to interview the Burnhams.   For the couple, it was an opportunity to show their family members they were still alive; for the terrorists, it was an opportunity to generate ransom money.

The Burnhams were despondent and appeared to believe they had been forgotten, that there was no hope.  

"We need someone to show some mercy," Gracia pleaded.  "This is no way to live.  There is no way to take care of yourself.  Last night, I woke up with severe chest pains, and there's nothing you can do.  You just lay there and you're in pain.

Your Friendgirl Deserves Better

Last year, after Boundless magazine reprinted my article, "Man Enough to Love a Real Woman," the editor was kind enough to bring me on as one of their freelance writers.  Today, Boundless published my first original article for the magazine: "Your Friendgirl Deserves Better."

In the article, I engage in some straight-talk with single guys who are "just friends" with women - physically speaking - but emotionally, they're inappropriately intimate.  You can find the article here.

Thanks to the Boundless team for the opportunity to work with them, and - to my readers - please flood their website with traffic.

Caught Between Love and a Cigarette

I was a child when I started hating cigarettes.

credit: healthylifecarenews.com

Blame my dad.  His smoking habit clung to him like a dirty, old coat.  He said he hated it, but the only thing that could stop him from puffing was dipping snuff.  I found that equally disgusting.

Over time, my disgust with dad's smoking habit turned into a disgust with anyone who smoked cigarettes.  It only got worse in college when I became a neurotic, Bible-thumping church cop who gratuitously looked for reasons to condemn people to hell.

And cigarettes were a sure-fire sign of a person who was flirting with the flames of eternal damnation.

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It wasn't just cigarettes though.  The list of no-nos grew with my zealotry and included overeating, drinking (alcohol or excessive caffeine), cursing, celebrating Halloween, watching movies, and kissing outside of marriage (yes, you read that correctly).