Author Archives: Dr. Philip W. Turner

Most people enjoy a good word game like crossword puzzles, word searches, jumbles, scrabble, and the like.  Such games are good intellectual stimulation, they can strengthen our vocabulary, and are simply fun to do.  Some people are good at them while others may struggle and take longer to complete.  Yet, like anything, the more timeContinue reading “Word Games”

You’re watching your favorite program on television when all of a sudden, the news interrupts your show with breaking news.  It usually begins with an announcement of some kind like “we interrupt this program for a special news alert.”  Something has happened that is of such importance that your regular program is interrupted.  Unfortunately, mostContinue reading “We Interrupt this Program”

Many people operate daily under a “to do” list.  That is, as they consider the day before them, they list the things that they want to accomplish.  Likewise, sometimes the “to do” list is prioritized based on what needs to be done first.  Somethings are more important than others and need to be taken careContinue reading “First Things First”

Sometimes things just come out wrong; that is, out of our mouths. We say the wrong thing or say something in the wrong way. Regardless, the words that flow from our mouths are heard by others in a negative light. I think most people can remember times in which they wished they had not saidContinue reading “Tongue Tied”

When I was a young boy there was an open lot across the street from my house.  As a result, it became a great place to play football with my friends.  We would often meet there after school to play.  When we played a game of football, we had to referee ourselves.  As a result,Continue reading “Do-Over”

I don’t guess any of us remember our first step.  The moment as infants, when we stop crawling, stand up, and take a step.  At first, we may only take a couple of steps before we fall again.  But eventually, we get the hang of it and commence to walking wherever we go.  It isContinue reading “Our First Step”

When I was young, I can remember taking weekend trips to the mountains with my family.  These were not well-planned trips.  My parents just had an urge to go and off we went.  In seeking our hotel accommodations, I can remember my parents reading the vacancy signs that used to be outside of hotels.  TheseContinue reading “Vacancy”

I wonder who it was that first shed a tear in the Bible?  Perhaps it was Adam and Eve after they had been banned from the Garden of Eden.  Did they weep over their fallen condition?  They had reason to cry.  Their paradise had been corrupted by their sin and they would no longer beContinue reading “A Story of Tears”

From the moment our alarm clocks go off in the morning and we begin a new day, we are surrounded by sounds.  The noises around us are many, changing, diverse, and constant.  From the sounds of the radio in our cars, the sounds of traffic, work, school, leisure, and the like, there is little inContinue reading “How Sweet the Sound”

I’m not sure how it happens, but sometimes I wake up in the morning with a song stuck in my head.  Somehow, a song that I heard or know, rises up out of somewhere and I find myself singing it or humming it throughout the day.  And once a song is stuck in my head,Continue reading “A New Song”

Good news.  It is hard to find in the media anymore.  Whether it is your local newspaper or television news channel or a national news program on cable, good news is rarely the topic of the day.  Rather, each day we are met with new headlines that remind us how broken our world is:  violence,Continue reading “Good News”

For many of us, when we hear the word “saints” we think of those figures of long ago who lived memorable lives for God, accomplished great things, were mighty prayer warriors, and people of great faith.  We usually see these saints in pictures in old books or paintings on walls.  Usually, in these pictures, theyContinue reading “When the Saints Go Marching In”

The dreaded check engine light.  It is such a small little light, but when the check engine symbol lights ups in your car, then something is not working right.  A sensor in your vehicle has determined that something is not functioning as it should.  The light could mean anything from a transmission problem to aContinue reading “Check Engine”

  Have you ever entered into an elevator with a lot of people and then noticed the maximum weight limit sign on the elevator?  You start looking at the people around you, sizing up their weight, and then trying to figure if you are close to the weight limit.  We probably don’t have to worry. Continue reading “Weight Limit”

Most every person has taken a fall at some point in their lives.  We’ve tripped over something, lost our footing, or slipped on a slippery surface.  Sometimes we catch ourselves, sometimes someone else catches us, and sometimes we fall.  A slip and a fall tend to follow a similar pattern.  First, there is that momentContinue reading “Slip Sliding Away”

Most people are familiar with the phrase “you are what you eat.”  It is usually said as a reminder that the food we eat will affect our physical bodies.  The first mention of the phrase “you are what you eat” came from the 1826 work The Physiology of Taste, in which French author Anthelme Brillat-SavarinContinue reading “You Are What You Eat”

There are 365 days in our calendar year.  Many of these days pass by without much fanfare.  We might call them ordinary days.  They are the days we go to work or school, pay the bills, grocery shop, change the oil in the car, and watch our favorite TV show.  Then there are those daysContinue reading “Make It Count”

We’ve all been warned before:  “Watch out, he has a quick temper.”  Be careful around her, “she can go off at any moment on you.”  “That group has a short fuse, so watch yourself.”  Such statements are warnings against engaging with someone because the individual or the group has a reputation of getting angry orContinue reading “Calm, Cool, and Collected”

For almost 30 years I have stood behind a pulpit every Sunday and tried to bring a message of hope to the people in attendance.  My faith in Jesus Christ has led me to believe that the story of his life, death, and resurrection is a message of hope for the entire world.  Now thereContinue reading “I Believe, Help My Unbelief!”

If you depend on a GPS system on your phone or in your car to get you from here to there, then you have undoubtedly heard the voice message “recalculating.”  If you miss a turn or turn the wrong way, then the GPS system will automatically reset your directions based on your last movement.  ItContinue reading “Recalculating”