James Pence - James Pence

Lessons from My Heart Attack: Every Day is a Gift

March 16, 2021

Lessons from My Heart Attack: Every Day is a Gift “But I trust in you, O LORD; I say, ‘You are my God.’ My times are in your hands;” — Psalm 31:14-15a, NIV On January 27th at around 5:00 a.m. I suffered a massive near-fatal heart attack. I have no memory of the heart attack that almost took my life. Indeed, I can’t recall anything from the entire previous day or for the following week. I’m told that I came about as close to death as it’s possible to come without dying. Humanly speaking, I shouldn’t even be here. Best-case scenario, I …

COVID-19: A New Normal?

May 4, 2020

So, when does this all end so we can get back to normal? That’s the question that’s been on many minds lately. The question has crossed my mind, too, but it’s usually followed by another, more unsettling, question. What if we aren’t going to get back to “normal?” What if we are experiencing a sea change, a dramatic, irreversible transformation in society and the way life is lived? Personally, I think that’s what’s happening. Although some are still optimistic that the virus and COVID-19 will all magically go away this summer, a lot of people in the know believe otherwise. …

Two Things I’m Asking God for During the Pandemic…

April 6, 2020

But I trust in you, Lord; I say, “You are my God.”15 My times are in your hands;(Psalm 31:14-15a NIV) New International Version (NIV)Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide. When I was on prison ministry staff with First Baptist Dallas, I commuted from Greenville, Texas, into downtown Dallas–60 miles each way. Although this was from 2005-2008, the Dallas freeways were still a challenging drive. Let’s say the drive did wonders for my prayer life. I knew that in a fraction of a second, my life could end on Interstate 30. All …

One Lesson I’ve ReLearned in the Pandemic

March 30, 2020

Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own (Matt. 6:34, NIV). New International Version (NIV)Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide. When our daughter Michelle died, we received a lot of good advice on how to manage our grief. One comment we heard most frequently from people who had walked the road before us was, “Take it one day at a time.” That advice served us well. When you are facing a loss and the grief associated …

Is Coronavirus a Sign of Christ’s Return?

March 23, 2020

He has shown you, O mortal, what is good. And what does the Lord require of you? To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God (Micah 6:8) New International Version (NIV) Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide. So, is the pandemic a sign that Christ is coming back soon? What follows is obviously just my opinion. You may disagree with me on this, but here’s what I think. Do I believe Jesus is coming back? Yes. Do I believe that all that’s going on with coronavirus is an indication that he’s about …

What does it mean to “trust God” in the corona virus crisis?

March 16, 2020

My flesh and my heart may fail, but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever (Psalm 73:26). New International Version (NIV)Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide. Okay, it’s time to be honest. Yes. I’m frightened. The current situation in the world and in the US, particularly the uncertainty of it all, are very distressing to me. It’s also confession time. You might not know this about me. Only a handful of people do. I’ve battled anxiety and depression most of my life. In my …

Reflections on a Pandemic

March 12, 2020

Though the fig tree does not bud and there are no grapes on the vines, though the olive crop fails and the fields produce no food, though there are no sheep in the pen and no cattle in the stalls, yet I will rejoice in the Lord, I will be joyful in God my Savior. The Sovereign Lord is my strength; he makes my feet like the feet of a deer, he enables me to tread on the heights (Habakkuk 3:17-19). New International Version (NIV)Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights …

Flash Fiction: Verdict

November 8, 2019

DISCLAIMER: What follows is horribly bad writing—intentionally so. I invited Facebook friends to supply me with seven prompts: Protagonist, Antagonist, Occupation, Setting, Situation, Wildcard, and Random Character. From those seven prompts, I agreed to write a piece of flash fiction up to 1000 words, using at least five of the seven. Prompt #6 below instructs me to “Overwrite. Use lots of adjectives and adverbs.” So I did. And just for fun I threw in a bunch of clichés, too. I had to break a lot of writing rules to produce this piece. So, please read this as an illustration of how …

The Lesson of the Manna

September 26, 2019

“[God] rained down manna for the people to eat, he gave them the grain of heaven” (Psalm 78:24 NIV). Sheer panic is an apt description for what I felt. Laurel and I moved to Baton Rouge, Louisiana in January of 1984, to begin working with a small Christian ministry. There was only one hitch. We had to raise our own support. After sending letters to everyone we knew (and a few people we didn’t), we had raised about $500 a month in income. We needed to cover at least three times that in expenses. I was a bit cocky at …

On God’s faithfulness…

September 24, 2019

“And my God will meet all your needs according to the riches of his glory in Christ Jesus” (Philippians 4:19 NIV). Is God faithful? Will he really provide for my needs? Or are those just words that sound good but have no anchor in reality? I can’t speak for others; I can only tell my story. Laurel and I began a journey of learning about God’s faithfulness in January of 1984. I had accepted the position of administrator for a small Christian ministry in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. We were excited about our move to Baton Rouge, but it included a …