Hi Friends and Readers, I hope this finds you well! The One Eye Out column is posted here. “Skipping Smart – An Open Letter To Those Under 30” If you’ve not already done so, subscribe (free!) on the home page of toddthompson.net. In early August, we will be redirecting “A Slice Of Life To Go” […]

Hey Friends and Readers, I hope this finds you well and rested after a great holiday weekend. The latest column is posted on toddthompson.net  – “Refurbished And Reconditioned” If you’ve not already done so, take a minute to subscribe (free!) at the top of the home page. We will be redirecting the Slice Of Life […]

Dear Friends and Readers, Transition. Change over. Make the switch. Whatever we call it, it’s time. The email subscription has been added to toddthompson.net ! You’ll see a green bar at the top of the home page. Simply add your name and email address. You’ll be subscribed! Click here to check out the latest column and […]

Hey Friends, The latest column is up at toddthompson.net! “Remember God’s Wonders” Take a minute to read and share with those who could use God’s encouragement today. Blessings to you! Todd Thompson      

Hey Friends, The latest column, “Real World”  is posted at toddthompson.net. It’s one you should share with the young people in your life. We are finishing a couple features on the new website, including an email sign up. We will continue to let you know of new columns here until you’re able to make the […]

Hey Friends The latest “One Eye Out” can be found at toddthompson.net W.W.M.J.D. ? Go there, give it a read and share with your friends! Blessings to you – Todd Thompson          

Dear Friends and Readers, It took longer than I anticipated. I’m still adding images, content and a couple features. It’s still not perfect. But if we wait for perfect nothing gets done. Please go poke around my new website and let me know what you think. This is a considerable and much needed change. After […]

Dear “Slice Of Life To Go” Readers, I hope this finds you and yours healthy, well, and off to an amazing start in 2016. Long time, no write. It’s been over a year since I’ve posted a column. It was one crazy year. In many ways, a year of losses. Suffice to say, we were […]

Earlier this week my dear friend Shirley lost her son. Andy, only 41 years old, went to sleep at his home in Lubbock and woke up in heaven with Jesus. I had the honor of speaking at Andy’s memorial service. In reflecting on it all when it was over, the thought occurred to me that, […]

Got the news today that Ben Mulder died last night. I shed a few tears when I heard about it. I wondered where those tears came from since I haven’t seen the man in 30 years. He wasn’t family or a close friend. In fact, I doubt he would even remember me. But I’ll always remember […]

I admit I didn’t pay much attention when he walked in. Hospital room doors should be revolving. The flow of nurses, doctors, therapists and staff never stops. In that moment, he was just another human in stream of traffic checking on one part or another of my Dad’s post-stroke condition. A guy with a beard and […]

She sits three people down and to my left on the church pew. I say “sits” but toddlers don’t sit much. Or for long. Sporting a pink and orange dress, she is up and down and all around. Reaching for hymn books and Bibles then on the floor before climbing back up again to look […]

When you look at a person, what do you see? My twins Annie and Emma are not quite 4 years old on this Saturday morning in 2004. The three of us are at a Home Depot in Chandler, AZ. We round a corner in the back of the store when I look toward the far […]

It’s April 11, 2014. Grandma Thompson would have been 114 today. Practically no one lives that long. She made it to 90, which is a pretty fair go at it. A full blood Swede, her parents came over from the old country. I got my love of coffee from her. If you’re Swedish, first you […]

To Sadie the Boxer, the parking lot of the Lubbock Animal Hospital is a smorgasbord of scent. She can’t sniff fast enough. It’s her first visit to the clinic. We rescued her from a shelter. They had her spayed and she needs the stitches removed. She’s only 7 months old. Just a puppy. A puppy afraid of […]

It’s always been there for the kid growing up in the church. It’s not talked about much because to do so might make others question our Christian commitment. And God knows we wouldn’t want that. After all, we have an image to protect. But it’s always there. If only it were a childhood disease that […]

It’s good for a small town guy like me to dine in a place like this. Wood paneled walls from the 70’s. Fiber board ceiling tiles, slightly water stained from roof leaks of years past. No artwork on the walls, save a calendar or two from a local vendor. Booths along the walls, some patched […]

For eight years I worked as an agent for Northwestern Mutual Life. My purpose was deliberate. I wanted to gain life experience and people skills before going to seminary. Northwestern Mutual is known as “The Quiet Company”. More than just a tag line, they’ve incorporated quiet into their operations model. Every Wednesday was a “quiet […]

In July of 1981, having graduated high school and preparing for my freshman year at Northwestern College, I received two letters in the mail. They were from my soon to be college roommates. Kevin Brasser from Oostburg, Wisconsin and Richard Gould from Spencer, Iowa. Kevin’s letter said, in part, “I like sports and girls and […]

Most everyone’s heard about it by now. I don’t have cable or satellite TV and I heard about it. Former Disney kid star Miley Cyrus’ song and dance performance with a married and old enough to know better Robin Thicke on the MTV awards show stunned many and horrified most. When liberal and conservative pundits […]

“Daddy.” “Yes, honey.” “Daddy. Listen to me.” “I am listening to you.” “No, you’re not. You’re looking at your phone.” “But I’m listening. I can do both, you know.” “No, you can’t.” “Yes, I can.” I hadn’t lifted my eyes once during this exchange. I felt two hands on my face, pulling my head upright. […]

Sitting at Fazoli’s enjoying some spaghetti when I look out the window to the fast food place next door. The sign said, “Try Our New Santa Sandwich”. I came here for a quiet lunch to relax. Reading this sign has me riled. A Santa Sandwich? When it’s 98 degrees outside? Last year I saw some […]

Starting life over in a new place includes finding new people to replace the familiar ones you came to depend on. In your old place, your dentist and doctor, hair stylist and manicurist, veterinarian and handyman were people you’d grown to trust over a period of time. When I moved from an Iowa small town […]

(((Some time ago my long-time friend and artist John Vander Stelt and I had the creative idea to select a verse from the Bible. He would paint a picture and I would write a column around the verse. The catch is we promised not to talk about our respective ideas or process. What you see […]

I’m only about five items into my list. Just after the crackers and on the way to the cheese when she comes around the corner. A forty-something woman in a maroon t-shirt. On the front, three words. “God knows everything.” Walk around Wal-Mart and you’ll see plenty of T-shirt commentary. Everything from the most recent […]