“Always be ready to give an explanation to anyone who asks you for a reason for your hope, but do it with gentleness and reverence.”  (1 Peter 3:15-16)

As we start another day, another week, there is a lot going on that will bring us face-to-face with the choice between hope and despair. Despair by far is the easiest choice. This world is seems to be coming apart – the headlines say it all: the attacks in Brussels, Orlando, Nice, France and Berlin; the ongoing crises in Syria, Sudan, and Ukraine, to name a few; and groups like ISIS, Al-Shabab, Boko Haram and al-Qaeda. That’s abroad; there is a whole litany of problems at home. Turn on any talk radio or 24-hour news station and you easily can be bombarded and overwhelmed by negativity and despair. And now there is the very real threat of global cyber-attacks that can make us ransom our very digital lives. Continue reading →