Afterthoughts

  JT and Pat Westbrook      For months, I had not worn my wedding ring. Since several of the small diamonds had fallen out, I stopped wearing it.      I don't know if my husband knew why I no longer had it on. One afternoon he looked at me and said in a stern voice, "You put a ring back on your finger."      A few days later I attended a wedding shower.  When we sat down at the table, I reached for my napkin. Wrapped around it was a plastic wedding ring. Making sure no one noticed, I slipped it into my purse. When I got home, I put it on my ring finger. To my surprise, it fit. I wore that little plastic ring until I could replace it with a real one.      In reality, the ring was only a symbol for the world to know that I was married. I didn't need one to feel committed to my husband. Committed Beyond the Ring A Sunday school teacher studied her lesson on a Saturday night.  Normally she felt confident because she ...

Alan Dale Westbrook       A loud bang against my son's bedroom window sent him running down the hall.  It startled all of us. The moment I heard him, my heart pounded as I rushed to see what happened. We almost collided as he ran past me to the living room. I couldn't find anything that could cause such a fright.      The next day we learned that one of his friends had tapped on the window with a piece of Hot Wheels track just to scare him.  After hearing the commotion inside the trailer, he ran away.       That night, my son ran to us because he was afraid.  When fear comes knocking on our own hearts, there's an even better place to run.  Where To Run There are a lot of things in life one can fear. Stormy weather makes us wonder when it will be clear. Whatever it is, there is One a person can turn to for help. Taking it to God in prayer is the very first step. God wants to hear your concerns no matter how small. As y...