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Years ago, I used to daily (!) do a “Bits and Pieces” post with news and articles that I read and thought were worth sharing. To be candid, the daily expectation got too much for me and I gave it up. However, I do appreciate the opportunity to share things that I have read or listened to that may bring encouragement or insight to those who read this blog. While I have no plans of once again making this a daily habit, I hope it will be a regular one.  All the standard disclaimers apply – when I post a link to one thing, I am not endorsing everything that person has said or done or will do in the future. I am just taking the “snapshot” of that moment in time and sharing it. I hope that in doing so, I can help focus our minds on things that are honorable, just, pure, lovely, commendable, excellence and worthy of praise (see Phil. 4:8). So without further ado, I once again bring you Bits and Pieces – a collection of interesting/noteworthy/heartening stories from the worldwide web:

• Find a Good Storm to Stir You – “The Greek for “stir up” means “to provoke” or “to agitate.” The same word is used just one other time in the New Testament, and it’s used (surprisingly) to describe the “sharp disagreement” that arose between Paul and Barnabas over John Mark (Acts 15:39). There’s a kind of sharpness in the imagery. Shake one another, unsettle one another, upset one another — with a holy interruption — until love spills over and good works spring to life.”
• Oklahoma Softball Pitcher Talks About What it Means to “Get Out of the Boat” – I don’t know the context of how this question got brought up at a post-game news conference, but this college student does a remarkable job discussing her faith with poise and grace. I love how she explains the biblical account and what it means for life and how they have applied it to the softball field. I hope if I am ever given the opportunity to discuss God’s Word on national TV that I do it with as much grace and winsomeness as she does in this clip. 
• John Cena visits Ukrainian teenage refuge in Amsterdam – This story is so heartwarming. A nonverbal teen with Down’s Syndrome needed to escape Ukraine with his family after their home in Mariupol was destroyed. His mother told him that they were leaving to search for John Cena in order to make the journey more palpable to him. John Cena heard of the situation and went to visit the teen in Amsterdam. While most of us probably can’t fly to Europe to make someone’s dream come true this is a reminder that an act of kindness can go a long way, especially amidst a difficult and terrible situation. 
• How to Get More Out of Church – ” As Christians, attending the Sunday service with our church family is one of the greatest privileges we have in life. But if we’re not careful, especially with the routine nature of the weekly meeting, we can slide into auto-pilot. This comes with costly results. Without intentionality, we may fail to steward this gift. And as a result, we may underappreciate and even miss the primary way God blesses his people.”
• 4 Guidelines for Dating Without Regret – “In a context in which dating has become too complicated, simple guidelines like these can offer a lot of help and a lot of clarity. They can help couples date confidently and, best of all, date without regrets.”