John Markum

Minute to Lose it

I watched a very exciting episode of the new game show, Minute to Win It, with my wife the other day. It’s a very creative idea for a TV show and seems to be very family oriented: a breath of fresh air in such a value-deficient media. And who said only bad news sales?! But […]

Unplanned Day Off

This week in the Quad Cities, almost everyone was graciously given a free day off of work, school, etc. courtesy of the snow. But for myself, many of our readers, and perhaps yourself, taking an extra day off just puts you behind. And some things must get done every week regardless of what the weather […]

Text-a-Prayer

I am serious about prayer. Experience has taught me that the times of most consistent prayer always yield the the richest times of the blessings of God. Conversely, whenever I’ve gotten less consistent with my prayer life, my world gets more and more chaotic. Now I’m not saying my life is easier when I pray. […]

The phrase no pain, no gain has been a mantra for athletes and fitness junkies for years. And what they understand about physical pain needs to be broadened to a much more general use in all of our lives. Pain hurts. That's the whole problem. No one enjoys it, and if someone does, we rightfully

The Premium of Pain