Tag Archives: redemption

We Accept the Love We Think We Deserve

Posted on August 23, 2026 by mitchteemley

Photo by Elisabeth Wales “We accept the love we think we deserve” (Stephen Chbosky). Sadly, we are not only prone to accepting the love we think we deserve, but only the love we think we deserve. And it severely limits … Continue reading →

Posted in For Pastors and Teachers, Quips and Quotes, Religion and Faith | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | 34 Comments

Wishing You a Merry Christmas Forever

Posted on December 25, 2025 by mitchteemley

The Christmas story has been told many times. And long may it be. Luke’s description of the birth of Jesus 2,000 years ago is read by untold millions of people every year. But the Christmas story is bigger than that. … Continue reading →

Posted in Culture, For Pastors and Teachers, Quips and Quotes, Religion and Faith | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 85 Comments

A Love Beyond Forgiveness

Posted on June 22, 2025 by mitchteemley

Imagine meeting someone who is so breathtakingly good, so kind and intelligent that you fall instantly in love with them. So you beg them to come and live with you. And they say, “Yes!” Now imagine they’ve acquired videos of … Continue reading →

Posted in For Pastors and Teachers, Quips and Quotes, Religion and Faith | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | 19 Comments

A Hidden Mystery Now Revealed

Posted on June 8, 2025 by mitchteemley

The Old Testament: God made us. The New Testament: God is with us. The Living Testament: God is in us. ∴

Posted in Culture, For Pastors and Teachers, Quips and Quotes, Religion and Faith | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 16 Comments

The Instrument That Changed the World

Posted on April 19, 2025 by mitchteemley

The cross is both a crude instrument of torture and a precise surgical device. As the former, it demonstrates God’s unrelenting love for us. And as the latter, it cuts open our hearts and implants his life-giving presence in us. … Continue reading →

Posted in For Pastors and Teachers, Quips and Quotes, Religion and Faith | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | 26 Comments

Sometimes the Teacher Becomes the Student

Posted on March 31, 2025 by mitchteemley

Thought for the Week This is a true story. I tutored writing students at a community college, and a suburban pop culture drone had just asked why she should “do punctuation.” “Because it’s the only thing that separates us from … Continue reading →

Posted in Culture, For Pastors and Teachers, Humor, Memoir, Writing and Blogging | Tagged , , , , , , , | 86 Comments

How to Handle a Waiter From Hell

Posted on January 7, 2025 by mitchteemley

Note: My Real Memoir will return next week. Meanwhile, here’s a (non-chronological) memoir moment. All I wanted from our server was for him to tell us what the specials were, to make a few recommendations, and then bring us our … Continue reading →

Posted in For Pastors and Teachers, Humor, Memoir | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | 42 Comments

30 Years Ago This Month

Posted on June 27, 2024 by mitchteemley

Movies That Have Moved Me Yesterday, I wrote about a movie that, fifty years ago, moved me not to weep but to come out of the comedy closet, as it were. A movie that gave me, the boy who’d suffered … Continue reading →

Posted in Entertainment and Popular Culture, For Pastors and Teachers, Movies | Tagged , , , , , , | 19 Comments

Two Delightful Summer Stories

Posted on June 20, 2024 by mitchteemley

It’s Family Time! Pastors, teachers, and drama groups: These two scenes of mine, one modern, and one based on an ancient tale, have been performed throughout North America! Both are now available from my script publisher SkitGuys.com for you to read or perform! … Continue reading →

Posted in For Pastors and Teachers, Religion and Faith | Tagged , , , , , , , | 8 Comments

The Birth of a Hero

Posted on April 6, 2024 by mitchteemley

Source: deviantart.com The Wishing Map is a full-length fantasy that is being posted episodically at this site. To read the previous episode click here. To read it from the start, click here. Gina had entered the same little cottage as her brother … Continue reading →

Posted in Fiction, Humor, Storytelling | Tagged , , , , , , | 21 Comments