By Brenda Cannon Henley
Many of the readers of my columns over the years know well the timeline and journey of my youngest granddaughter, Maya Grace Stancil. She celebrated her seventh birthday during a long hospitalization in the Cardiac ICU of John Hopkins All Children’s Hospital in St. Petersburg, Florida. Maya had her initial heart transplant when

By Brenda Cannon Henley
“Both faith and fear demand you believe in something you cannot see. You choose.”
Happy Christians live their lives by faith. Worried or anxious Christians fret their lives away in uncertainty and fear. Neither force can be seen by the human eye, but both are very powerful and help to contribute joy and

By Brenda Cannon Henley
I am not a prophet nor a daughter of a prophet, but one of my ladies that I teach in small group on Thursdays asked me a question this week, and the attached is my answer. With every newscast we see or hear, it seems that there is more conflict, war, unrest, rumors of war, and trouble on every front. None of us know exactly when

By Brenda Cannon Henley
The older I get, I have found I truly do not like it when I suspect someone is being deceitful with me. I dislike it more when I strongly believe that a person is looking me straight in the face and telling a bald face lie. Lies have a tendency to tumble down on each other like a stack of Texas domino’s. Have you noticed that when one untruth

By Brenda Cannon Henley
It is a matter of fact – Every one I know really wants to be happy. They may not say it directly or respond positively when directly asked, but genuine happiness is a long sought after goal. We chase our goals and our dreams. We work hard. We try to rear our children the best we know how at the moment. We strive to give what we can

By Brenda Cannon Henley
Our Bibles are filled with the teachings of Jesus. He provided information, illustrations, and instruction on how to live the Christian life after we become believers. He was an absolute master at conveying deeply important subjects using common, current, or contemporary illustrations of daily life that his hearers could

By Brenda Cannon Henley
My son, who is my remarkable pastor, gave an illustration yesterday morning that I personally will not soon forget. I may not get every fact perfectly correct, but I do remember that it centered on a pastor’s family in Spring, Texas. That got my attention right away and I wanted to hear the rest of the story.  My apologies to the family if I do not

By Brenda Cannon Henley
I clearly remember when I was in high school in a small Georgia town (that is now a huge melting pot of citizens from around the globe), we often speculated on who we would be, where we would go, and what we would accomplish. The Clarkston, located in DeKalb County, Georgia, is no longer the little berg we knew and loved. Last time

By Brenda Cannon Henley
We often see very “broken adults” trying to play big roles in life, giving advice, asking dumb questions, causing hurt and chaos in other lives, and presenting a smug front. Reminds me of an old expression, “Physician, heal thyself.” I heard an adult daughter chide her heartbroken father not long ago because he had made his own decision to

By Brenda Cannon Henley
“Neither do I condemn you,” Jesus declared. “Go now and leave your life of sin.” John 8:1-11
The woman who was brought to Jesus had been “caught in the act” of adultery, and everyone knew she was guilty. They probably also knew that the religious leaders didn’t care about her but were just trying to

By Brenda Cannon Henley
While preparing to move into my new home about two years ago, I chanced to find a small, old galvanized tub stored high on a shelf in my outdoor utility room. Under my daughter’s (She Who Must Be Obeyed) watchful eye, I was getting a yes or a no on each object. Her question, “Why in the world would you want to keep that old tub? It is old and

By Brenda Cannon Henley
My heart is heavy and I need my friends of a lifetime. I am awake in the wee hours praying for my youngest grandchild, Maya Grace Stancil. Our strong, spirited, smart, sweet, stunning, surprising, and sensitive child is the daughter of my son, Dr. John (Brent) Stancil, and his courageous wife, Valerie. Brent is Senior Pastor of

By Brenda Cannon Henley
Happy New Year to each of our readers and their families. May we all experience a sense of energy and renewal as we embark on a new 12 months of life, activity, and making memories that affect not only us, but everyone in our circles of life. I challenge each of you to take the time to think hard, pray, and come up with one or two

By Brenda Cannon Henley
If one has written for any number of years for the general public, and touched on many topics, it becomes rather normal to expect criticism from time to time. Some readers seem to be just spoiling for a fight, and I have come to believe they are not even really aggravated with a particular writing or point being taken. They are just

By Brenda Cannon Henley
Waiting is often times not easy for all ages. I clearly remember waiting for certain life events during the span of years I have lived. When I was 14 or 15, I wondered if I would ever be 16 and be taken to the Georgia Department of Motor Vehicles to test for my driver’s license. That was such a big day in the lives of my

By Brenda Cannon Henley
People watching is always fun to me. I can do it for hours and don’t usually mind waiting in hospitals, doctor’s offices, or airports. My entertainment comes from simply watching those around me, wondering to myself, and imagining what their lives are like, where they might be going, or what they are really feeling. I ask questions like,

By Brenda Cannon Henley
Reflection has a larger place in my heart these days and going into November and the Christmas season has caused me to think critically about what I am most grateful for in my life. Perhaps this is a tenant of getting older, having been blessed to live a good life, or thinking how very grateful I am for the friends God has given me over the

By Brenda Cannon Henley
I really don’t like it when I suspect someone is being deceitful with me. I dislike it more when I strongly believe that a person is looking me straight in the face and telling a bald face lie. Lies have a tendency to tumble down on each other like a stack of Texas domino’s. Have you noticed that when one untruth is told, there are generally several

By Brenda Cannon Henley
“Sometimes we only see the results of change and do not remember the brave path it took to get there.”
There have been three things that have converged in my mind over the past few days that brought me to this column. I jot down my thoughts as I think them, or enough of them to remember the main thrust. As due dates

By Brenda Cannon Henley
Encouragement is defined as an expression of support or approval, or is words or actions that assist or inspire someone or something. Discouragement is to deprive of courage, hope, or confidence by word or deed. It can also mean to dishearten; dispirit, to dissuade (usually followed by from) or to obstruct by opposition or

By Brenda Cannon Henley
A funny thing happened to me about ten days ago and I have been considering the incident since. I was being driven to an appointment by a friend and the sky darkened quickly and fairly heavy clouds began to fill the sky. The wind kicked up suddenly and drops starting falling. The driver turned on the windshield wipers and they began making a

By Brenda Cannon Henley
No doubt about it, we are living in turbulent times. There is unrest on many fronts – In our families, in our homes, in our communities, and in our nation. If we do not remain focused and alert, the worst unrest of all is in our own heart and mind. How can we keep calm and create within ourselves a peaceful environment in which to

By Brenda Cannon Henley
In doing research on material for another lesson I am to teach, I found an interesting batch of material and statistics on stress and what it does to the human body. In this day and age in which we live, and with the constant struggle against Covid threats, stress related illnesses are all too common. More than 40 per cent of the

By Brenda Cannon Henley
“Great peace have them that love thy law, and nothing shall offend them.” This verse was one of Mrs. John R. Rice’s favorites, and she used it often in her Bible teaching on our many programs. I try to keep her teaching forefront in my mind because it is always scriptural, practical, and very helpful. Many people today have little

By Brenda Cannon Henley
People watching is always fun to me. I can do it for hours and don’t usually mind waiting in hospitals, doctor’s offices, or airports. My entertainment comes from simply watching those around me, wondering to myself, and imagining what their lives are like, where they might be going, or what they are really feeling. I ask questions like,

By Brenda Cannon Henley
An old friend gave me some good advice in the months following my husband, Ted’s, horrible illness and ensuing death. Ted and I both had waited for the happy relationship we had and thanked God for allowing us to meet, get acquainted, and three years later, get married. We enjoyed so many of the same things, including fishing,

By Brenda Cannon Henley
Hurricane Ike brought a lot of tragedy and destruction to the Bolivar Peninsula of Texas. One of the very best results came in the form of friendships made and genuine help offered by faith based groups to our residents. One of my favorite personalities, and it is an enormous one, is James Chambless, affectionately known as

By Brenda Cannon Henley
In preparing to write this series on the mighty Book of Proverbs, I studied from many commentaries, sermon notes, books, my own lessons for women and children, and other helpful information. I found so many good sources and reveled in what men and women found in its depths. Questioning my own plan of how to