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Beware the Time Robbers

Valerie Cullers 14 Comments

Time Robbers…we all know them. Not only do we know them, we are intimately acquainted with them. Have you ever sat down “just for a moment” to scroll through your phone and then looked up to find you just lost twenty minutes or half an hour?

This has happened to me more times than I can count. I stop to check the headlines on the news, and then an article comes up that looks interesting, so I decide to read it. I finish it only to scroll down the headlines again. The next article looks informative, and then boom, I read it and look up at the clock. Twenty minutes have passed, and I really don’t have much to show for them. The Time Robbers have stolen my time once more.

I love my phone, but it is definitely a Time Robber in my life. Can you relate? Do you spend too much time on your phone checking one type of social media or another? How do you feel when you look up and realize you just lost half an hour? I certainly don’t feel any smarter or better informed. Yes, I have read a lot of information, but will I use it anywhere in my life? Not necessarily. Most of it is just a sort of flotsam that gets tucked away in my brain. It usually gets filed under “D” for detritus.

Lately, I have been trying to limit the time I spend checking the news on my phone. Maybe once in the morning and once at night, and hopefully for not more than fifteen minutes at a time. And speaking of checking my phone at night, I can’t tell you the times I checked it right before bed and read some upsetting headline. So instead of going to sleep peacefully, I was left thinking about something negative as my head hit the pillow. Not only had my time been stolen, but also my peace of mind. Sheesh, what a waste!

Do you have any Time Robbers in your life? Time is the only commodity we can spend and never get back from the Robbers. Have you taken the time to identify yours? If so, how are you dealing with them?

Photo by Alexas. Courtesy of Pixabay

A Second Chance

Valerie Cullers 7 Comments

Strangers walk by a cheap prostitute thinking,

“What a poor excuse for humanity.”

I too walk by thinking,

“Where is the Messiah to tell her,

“Go, and sin no more.”

A few blocks later, I realize she could be me

I open my scarlet wallet

And take out two fifties.

I turn, she is gone working.

Will I get a second chance to tell her

God loves her just the way she is?

Please turn from your sin and iniquity

Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ

And go, and sin no more.

Copyright 2025 Valerie Cullers

This One Thing

Valerie Cullers 19 Comments

Now that January is almost gone, and all of my so-called resolutions have either been implemented or discarded, I thought about one resolution that I could implement each day that actually might make a difference in my neighborhood. This year, I decided that the one thing I would like to implement was to love my neighbor as myself.

You know, it sounds simple, but it really isn’t. My neighbor has her own catering business, and her garbage is near to overflowing every time she puts it out for the garbage trucks to pick up. Many times, after they dump her garbage, there is some lying on the ground. Sometimes, it blows into our yard. My first response is usually irritation as I look out the window and see it blowing by. I have decided to move from that response to a kinder response. I am thankful she has a good job. I am thankful that once in a while, she brings my husband and me lunch, etc., etc.

This may sound simplistic to you, but it has changed my outlook. Every time one of our neighbors makes a lot of noise or their dogs bark, after my initial irritation, I am choosing to think kindly of them. My neighbors don’t even know that my attitude has changed, but I know. It has made a difference inside of me.

Don’t get me wrong – I like my neighbors. I just want to have a kinder, gentler attitude towards them this year. I know I will be a nicer person inside, and perhaps some of that kindness may even move from an inside attitude to an outward action. You never know, after I pick up some of my neighbor’s trash that has blown into my yard, I may even pick up some of hers. Stranger things have happened!

Photo courtesy of Pixabay

A Full Pardon

Valerie Cullers 11 Comments

For the past few weeks, our society has been focused on the Presidential Pardons being given out at the White House. The President granted his son a full pardon and today has pardoned over 1,500 people. Some of his pardons have been controversial, and others, not so much. Like it or not, over the next several weeks, we are likely to see many more pardons.

Pardons are not something that we see happen a lot. Judges don’t usually give them out and there are not many other entities that are allowed to give out judicial pardons. Because pardons are such a rare thing, they gain a lot of attention.

A lot of us have not been in jail or prison and do not have a record that is limiting our life choices. We do not normally think about pardons in the judicial sense but we are aware of the need for them in our relationships. When we apologize for something we have done that may have offended someone, we want to be pardoned (or forgiven) our wrong. If people are unable or unwilling to forgive or pardon others, they can lead to a very difficult life indeed.

When I think about pardons, I immediately think about the fact that I was given a full pardon several years ago. I was in my mid-twenties, had lived a bit of a wild life, and needed the forgiveness of God for my sins. They were weighing heavily on my mind and I wished to make a change in the way I had been living. I learned that I was not alone and that the Scripture says, “For all have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God.” I found out that God was waiting to grant me a full pardon; if only I would ask for it.

I was grateful that his Son, Jesus, had come to this earth to die in order that I might be pardoned for the sins I had committed. He paid the penalty for my sin so that my relationship with the Father could be restored and that I could live a new life. “For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life,” John 3:16.

Did I deserve a full pardon? No. Did some people not understand how I could be forgiven and begin to live a new life? Yes. It didn’t matter to me. I was and am eternally grateful to the Father and his Son, Jesus, for the full pardon.

When we think about pardons, we should look inside of ourselves and see if we need a full pardon. Let’s not look at others and think about their unworthiness but look at our own unworthiness when it comes to the ability to stand before a holy and righteous God.

After looking inside, do you feel the need a full pardon? Don’t be afraid to reach out to Jesus and ask for it. He has paid the full price for all of your sins and He is more than willing to give you one if only you will ask.

Photo by Chil Vera. Courtesy of Pixabay.

The Last Laugh

Valerie Cullers 3 Comments

“He who laughs last, laughs best.”

Most of us are aware of the pushback that came after the opening ceremony of the Paris Olympics. People were especially outraged at the parody of Da Vinci’s Last Supper. To paraphrase the Art Director of the ceremony the day after, he basically said that we should all just have a good laugh and move on. The pushback continues, and now he has come out and said it wasn’t a parody of The Last Supper at all. It was supposed to represent a 17th century Dutch painting, The Feast of the Gods by Jan Harmensz van Biljert. Really? It only took him four days to come up with that explanation. If it was the truth, why didn’t he set the record straight initially instead of talking about how he accomplished his goal of inclusivity at the Opening Ceremony?

I’ve thought a lot about it and to say I was disappointed at the display is an understatement. My spirit was grieved that again Christian symbolism has been upended to make a point for those who wish to display their sexuality in a public in-your-face performance.

Those who put on that performance probably had a good laugh that night and several good laughs since then. But how do you think the Lord felt about the performance? Was he up in heaven wringing his hands and saying, “Oh dear, Oh dear!”?

I don’t think so. He knows those who oppose him and his moral laws, and he knows what their end will be. To quote Psalm 2, verses 1-5, “Why do the nations conspire and the peoples plot in vain? The kings of the earth take their stand and the rulers gather together against the Lord and against his Anointed One. “Let us break their chains, they say, and throw off their fetters.” The One enthroned in heaven laughs; the Lord scoffs at them. Then He rebukes them in his anger and terrifies them in his wrath.”

Take comfort, there is coming a day when those who oppose the Lord will have to face him and it will be a very sad day indeed. Better to come to him now while it is possible and the Days of Mercy and Grace are still before us. His hands are always held out for those who will turn from their wicked ways and come to him. No sin is too great for him to forgive. Come while there is still time.

Blinders

Valerie Cullers 12 Comments

Blinders. When we think about them, we know they can have positive or negative connotations depending on who’s wearing them. When they are put on horses, they are used for a positive purpose. They protect horses from what is going on around them. It can keep them from getting spooked or injured by loud noises or lots of commotion. If they wear them when they are running in a race, they will not be distracted by other horses and can keep their eyes on the track ahead of them.

But when we think about a person with blinders on, we usually think of them in the negative. “Oh, that guy walks around with blinders on and he has no idea what is happening around him.” We think that his blinders insulate him from what is going on in the world. And you know what? You’re right, they do.

This past week, there has been a lot going on around me; personally, politically, nationally, and internationally. On Sunday evening, I felt the Lord impressing on me to put blinders on and just keep my eyes on Him. Yes, I am aware of what is happening around me but by keeping the blinders on, I can focus on Him and not the problems. I can pray about things and not get into the weeds emotionally. I don’t know about you, but when I look around a lot is going on that I could be distracted by.

The word says, “You will keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on You, because he trusts in You.” Isaiah 26:3 As I have kept my eyes on the Lord, I have not gone up and down emotionally and been distracted by events happening around me. It’s Friday evening and I could be exhausted mentally and emotionally but I am not. I know that I am not in control of events taking place in the world. I am only in control of my reaction to them. More and more, we may need to keep blinders on in order to live a life filled with the peace of God.

Let’s face it. The world is a mess, and there is not much we can do about most of it. We can however, pray. It seems like a small thing, but it can make a big difference as we see events unfolding around us. Blinders…they used to be such a negative thing when it came to people, but they may be just what we need to not only survive but to thrive with a supernatural peace in the chaotic world we live in.

Photo by Krsten Madsen. Courtesy of Pixabay.

What If?

Valerie Cullers 13 Comments

As a young child with five brothers, sometimes I wished I were a boy. No, I didn’t want to be a male; I just wanted the freedom that the boys had. I was the one who had to come in early, take a bath, and get ready for bed. They were allowed much more leeway as to how long they could stay outside and play. What if I had gone to school and some teacher would have been talking about gender identification? What if she asked, “Would any of you like to be a boy?“

I cringe to think what would have happened to me. For sure, I would have been singled out and sent to a psychologist. What if, as a young child, I was unable to share my feelings about freedom? No way did I want to actually be a boy…they were smelly, played in the dirt and had burping contests. I loved my new dresses and shiny shoes. Would I have been labeled non-binary? Would I have been made to go to counseling?

When I was in the fifth and sixth grades, my restrictions got tighter as my brothers’ loosened. They could go out for sports, and go to movies by themselves. In the summer, they got to work outside and I had to stay inside, clean, and pretend I wanted to learn to bake. I envied my brothers even more. If I had been talking to a counselor, I would have expressed my frustration. Would I have still been on a gender-related path…possibly dysphoria? I don’t know but I dread to think about it.

By the time I was in Junior High, things began to change. My brothers had to mow the lawn in the summer and shovel snow in the winter. If we had a flat tire, one or two of them had to go outside and help my dad. They inevitably came in dirty. At that point, I still envied their freedom, but no way would I ever say, “I wanted to be a boy.”

Perhaps my thoughts about the subject are out of proportion to what would have happened to me. Would I have been properly diagnosed early, even if I wasn’t able to express myself? I don’t know. Last week, I listened to a young woman talk about her experience. She was put on hormones after only three visits with a psychiatrist. She deeply regrets the changes that have happened to her body, and now we know that some of those changes are irreversible. She was talking about hormones, not surgery. I shudder to think about the young people who have decided they made a mistake after they had their wombs or testicles removed.

I recently read some statistics in an article written by Lindsey Tanner for The Associated Press. In her article, “younger, new guidelines say,” she states, “The World Association for Transgender Health“ said hormones could be started at 14, two years earlier than the groups previous advice, and some surgeries done at 15 or 17, a year or so earlier than previous guidance. The group acknowledged potential risks but said it is unethical and harmful to withhold early treatment.”

Different states have their own laws about gender reassignment surgery and treatment. It seems to me that we should protect young people as long as possible from making irreversible decisions they may one day come to regret. What if we took a step back and reevaluate our educational systems focus on gender identification and left it out of the curriculum of our primary and secondary schools? It would take this malevolent ideology away from the educators and let children and their parents deal with any real form of gender dysphoria.


Photo courtesy of Pixabay.