The French Supreme Court recently decided that French unborn babies that are miscarried and die can be registered with the government, given a name, and be buried in a cemetery. Many in France are fearful that this action will begin to undermine the so called "right to choose" to kill the unborn.

Is the intellectual acknowledgement of doctrines and ideas faith? Or is that just custom and/or tradition? If one's beliefs do not create a heart that is passionate for God and obedient to Him, is it faith?

If God is more than a theory, then faith needs to involve a loving and obedient relationship with Him. God speaks to people continually through their conscience, their circumstances, other people, the Bible, and His direct voice in their heart.

After I first encountered God in 1970, I began to read the book of Acts in the New Testament. I noticed that it contained many references to hearing God speak: "God said to Peter," and "The Spirit spoke to Paul." I didn't think God was talking to me, so one day I asked Him about it.

I said: "God, you frequently spoke to people in the New Testament, why aren't you speaking to people in our day."

Suddenly these words popped into my mind: "The problem is not that I'm not speaking, but that you're not listening." Now, I know that I didn't answer my own question or make that up. I had never thought such thoughts before.

Since then God frequently speaks to me -- when I take the time to listen to His voice. He often tells me things that I don't want to hear. My challenge is always: Do I obey what God said or do my own thing? It's very tough to go against my own desires and obey God, but I strive to do so.

Faith is not theory or religion or ritual or doctrine or ceremony. Faith is a dynamic, personal, obedient relationship with the living God.

Some churches and pastors make a big deal about people carrying their Bible to church.. Personally, I've never liked carrying my Bible in my hand.. I'm good at misplacing things and I don't want to lose it. Also, when I hear a Scripture read, I like to listen, not follow along in my Bible -- that usually confuses and distracts me, especially if my translation doesn't match the one being read.

Now I'm not against people carrying their Bible to church if they really want to. However, many preachers try to make people feel guilty for not bringing a physical copy of their Bible with them.

I do carry my Bible in my heart and my mind. I love to read it, think about it, ponder it. I try to apply it to my life and actually do what it says. So should I feel bad because I don't have a copy in my hand at church?

Besides, the most important question is not; "Do you carry your Bible?" but "Does your Bible carry you?" When you feel like you can't go on another day; when someone stepped on your last nerve; when you are sick and tired of waiting for something; when your world is falling apart; when you want to go ahead and sin -- does your Bible carry you to victory then?

Motivation Quotation: "It is not love in the abstract that counts. Men have loved a cause, the brotherhood, the workers, the poor, the oppressed -- but they have not loved man, they have not loved the least of these. They have not loved 'personally.'" -- Dorothy Day

Motivation Applied: Love is not an abstract emotion intended to promote great philosophical or psychological writings. It was not designed to sell pop music. Love is the practical reaching out to another human being in self-sacrificing, relational acts of kindness.

In the abstract, love is a beautiful feeling or a noble concept or a heart-throbbing obsession. In reality, however, love is humbly serving someone -- practically putting someone's needs, concerns, and well being above your own in spite of your feelings.

Love always disrobes from status and prestige in the effort to listen -- to connect heart-to-heart with another person. Love personally embraces, serves, and honors the least of these in warm, ongoing friendship.

Love is like diamonds, costly yet often cheaply imitated. But when real love is sacrificially demonstrated, it is as dazzling as a diamond reflecting sunlight.

What's up with this? If a foul smell is suddenly released into a room, people scatter -- no one sticks around to take it in. However if negative or nasty speech is suddenly released into a room, many people will give it their attention and even savor it. Ah . . .

Now the negative effect of an odor is minimal. It is momentarily unpleasant and annoying, but it has no real impact on a person. So why do people flee foul aromas so enthusiastically while they eagerly take in foul words?

The negative effect of unwholesome talk is long lasting and can be devastating. Some people are still hurt and angry over unkind words spoken to them many years ago.

British writer, Aldous Huxley said: "Words are the most powerful drug known to mankind," yet nowadays people lap up destructive words like they are candy. Then we wonder why we feel discouraged or depressed. Could it be because of our candy-like consumption of negative words?

What if somebody invented a box that would emit nasty odors? Would you buy one for your home? Would you sit in front of it for hours a day and take in the foul smells?

Why then do we Americans sit in front of a box or a flat screen and consume destructive and dirty words? Why do we, for hours a day, fill our minds with scenes of death, disrespect, violence, vulgarity?

If we run from stinky smells (that can't harm us), why won't we run from (the very harmful) stinky speech and stinky scenes on sicko vision?