By God's design, I believe our hearts and minds are shaped by Story. It's how we learn. It's how we make sense of the world. Characters, situations, moral consequences are all around us.

His Name will never fall. His Name will never be defeated. His Name will never be reduced to rubble. A tower that’s stronger than any man-made fortress and large enough to see from a distance, even if we’ve lost our way.

With God, it isn’t who you were that matters; it’s who you are becoming.

Fun is temporary at best; it's risky, even dangerous, at worst. Joy, on the other hand, was mystery I couldn't seem to decipher.

For me, laughter is how we take a much needed break from the heartache, such that when we turn to face it again, it has by some miracle grown smaller in size and intensity, yet not disappeared altogether.

If the Almighty directs our steps, we've no need to look back over our shoulders.

The choice is yours: Enjoy a delicious meal of, say, veal fantarella with grilled vegetables. Or spend a quiet hour reading David Gregory's book. You may find an altogether different sort of hunger has been sated by the final page. Brilliant in its simplicity, fearless in its presentation of the truth, Dinner with a Perfect Stranger is one invitation you'll want to RSVP.