Stephen De La Vega

  The Stanley Cup . One of the most revered trophies in professional sports. The cup itself has never changed, and it is the only professional trophy to display the names of every player of the championship team each year. As a hockey fan, I’ve seen this trophy in person. Not as my home team skated around the ice with it after winning the Stanley Cup Playoffs. That hasn’t happened yet. I’ve seen it in the Hockey Hall of Fame in Toronto where it stands protected and honored most of the year. One thing I appreciate about the great sport of hockey: There isn’t a lot of glory outside of teamwork. Don’t get me wrong, the sport has its share of superstars, but, in its typically low-scoring gameplay, even the superstars thrive only within well-managed, cooperative team play. Teammates continually support and assist each other with humility as they work in unison to get the puck past the opposing goaltender. I imagine most hockey players are not in the game for individual glory. Maybe t...

  Some countries have already celebrated Thanksgiving this year. My country will celebrate next week. It’s a time of looking back with family or friends to acknowledge our blessings (or harvest, historically). But it’s not always a positive reflection. Sometimes there’s baggage. Maybe often. Sometimes it’s our baggage or our shortcomings. We might even feel like walking away from God. Or maybe we already have. If we carry this into Thanksgiving week, or just in life, this Resolution 11 is for us.   We began our “ Journey to Resolve ” in July 2024. (Sorry it’s taking so long to cover all 15 resolutions!) The articles in this series have been New Year’s resolutions throughout the year, not just at the beginning. So far, we’ve enjoyed some very brief book surveys and stories that highlight important parts of Israel’s history. And our last two resolutions were drawn from two books of poetry and wisdom: Job and Proverbs. We circle back now to a sweeping look at Israel’s history...

  Tell my feet not to falter Tell my lips what to say Tell me walk on these waters Tell my hands what to pray Overwhelm, when I’m overwhelmed Overcome, when I’m overcome These are lyrics from a song called Companion by Tom Mottershead . Sometimes life overwhelms us. It overwhelmed Job whose experience with naysayers was featured in Resolution 9, Rise Above the Naysayers . We ended Resolution 9 with encouragement to entrust ourselves to God. Job realized: He doesn’t have the perspective to understand the why. Nothing can compare to the authoritative power of God. His limitations should be accompanied by humble trust in God’s wisdom and character. And he said this in response: My ears had heard of you but now my eyes have seen you. Therefore I despise myself and repent in dust and ashes.” Job 42:5-6 Job bowed in humility. He lost everything and he would never fully understand why. We don’t understand the why behind the winding in the ...

  “ Naysayer: one who denies, refuses, opposes, or is skeptical or cynical about something” ( Merriam-Webster ). We’ve all experienced naysayers to some degree. Sometimes they band together – maybe even carry signs! We can walk the other way most of the time, but when they target us, it might be difficult to rise above their offensive attacks. Job was a godly man who had it all, then suddenly lost it all. And, to add insult to injury, his friends caused him much heartache and torment...continually. Maybe we won’t have as many catastrophic afflictions as Job, but we certainly will experience people like Job’s friends. Let’s call them naysayers. Even those who mean well can be naysayers. They are simply a part of life. Let’s venture further into Resolution #9: I will rise above the naysayers . After Job’s extreme loss, three of his friends sat with him. They were sure God had punished him for disobedience, and they laid into him. Insult after insult – all based on a presumption ...