Author Archives: jrcoggins

About jrcoggins

James R. Coggins is a professional writer and editor based in British Columbia, Canada. He wrote his first novel in high school, but, fortunately for his later reputation as a writer, it was never published. He briefly served as a Christian magazine editor (for just over 20 years). He has written everything from scholarly and encyclopedia articles to jokes in Reader’s Digest (the jokes paid better). His six and a half published books include four John Smyth murder mysteries and one other, stand-alone novel. In his spare time, he operates Mill Lake Books, a small publishing imprint. His website is www.coggins.ca

Improve Your Writing with AI (Artificial Intelligence!) By James R. Coggins

Posted on March 12, 2025 by jrcoggins

Every time I start to share one of my blogs on social media, I receive a message such as: • “Start a post, try writing with AI.” That “sentence” contains a grammatical error called a “comma splice,” joining what should … Continue reading →

Posted in James R. Coggins | Tagged AI, Artificial Intelligence, computers, professional writer, Winston Churchill, writing | 4 Comments

Freedom by James R. Coggins

Posted on March 5, 2025 by jrcoggins

Freedom is not commonly thought of as a Christian value, but it is. In Galatians 5, Paul declared that “Christ has set us free” (Galatians 5:1 NIV). But Paul then warned the Galatians: “Do not let yourselves be burdened again … Continue reading →

Posted in James R. Coggins | Tagged addiction, freedom, Galatians, indulgence, legalism, slavery | Leave a comment

A Day in the Life of a Semi-retired Writer by James R. Coggins

Posted on February 26, 2025 by jrcoggins

Younger people often wonder what seniors do with all that spare time they have in their retirement years. I’ll be glad to elucidate that for all of you enquiring minds. Here is what I did on a recent typical day. … Continue reading →

Posted in James R. Coggins | Tagged Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn, One Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovich, retirement, seniors | Leave a comment

Misplaced Confidence by James R. Coggins

Posted on February 19, 2025 by jrcoggins

In Philippians 3:1-11, the apostle Paul was warning the early Christians about relying on circumcision and following other Jewish rituals and obeying other laws and rules. He described his own life, saying, “If someone else thinks they have reasons to … Continue reading →

Posted in James R. Coggins | Tagged Faith, faith alone, Justification by faith, Paul, salvation, sola fides, testimony | Leave a comment

Where Do Writers Get Their Ideas? By James R. Coggins

Posted on February 12, 2025 by jrcoggins

Writers are often asked, “Where do you get your ideas?” People who ask such questions are not writers. For real writers, ideas are not the problem. Writers are like a seething cauldron bubbling over with ideas, more ideas than they … Continue reading →

Posted in James R. Coggins | Tagged Alaska cruise, cozies, murder mysteries, people watching, writers' ideas | Leave a comment

Covenants by James R. Coggins

Posted on February 5, 2025 by jrcoggins

At Mount Sinai, God made a covenant, a formal agreement, with the Israelites, the essence of which was the document we know as the “Ten Commandments” (even though the Bible never calls it that). The Hebrew word for covenant is … Continue reading →

Posted in James R. Coggins | Tagged adultery, Mount Sinai, no other gods, Ten Commandments | Leave a comment

Exercise Tips for Seniors by James R. Coggins

Posted on January 29, 2025 by jrcoggins

As we get older, it is important that we recognize the changes that are taking place in our bodies and the risks involved in that. When we were younger, we saw no problem with getting involved in sports. As we … Continue reading →

Posted in James R. Coggins | Tagged back pain, exercise, older, pop, seniors, sports, thin skin | Leave a comment

Honoring Parents in the New Testament by James R. Coggins

Posted on January 22, 2025 by jrcoggins

The fifth of the “Ten Commandments” (Exodus 20:12: “Honor your father and your mother, so that you may live long in the land the Lord your God is giving you) is affirmed in the New Testament. In Mark 7, Jesus … Continue reading →

Posted in James R. Coggins | Tagged greatest commandment, Honoring father and mother, Kingdom of God, love God and people, New Testament, parenting, putting God first, Ten Commandments | Leave a comment

Words for a Marriage by James R. Coggins

Posted on January 15, 2025 by jrcoggins

When my wife and I got married forty-six years ago, friends, family members, and church members gave us a wide variety of much needed gifts, helping us to get established as we set out to build a life and a … Continue reading →

Posted in James R. Coggins | Tagged Anger, Bible verses, forgiveness, love, marriage, purpose, romance, wedding presents | Leave a comment

Honoring Parents by James R. Coggins

Posted on January 8, 2025 by jrcoggins

“Honor your father and your mother, so that you may live long in the land the Lord your God is giving you” (Exodus 20:12 NIV). In our individualistic society, we tend to interpret the fifth of the Ten Commandments in … Continue reading →

Posted in James R. Coggins | Tagged honoring parents, Promised Land, stable society, Ten Commandments | Leave a comment

Classic Messages by James R. Coggins

Posted on January 1, 2025 by jrcoggins

Over the holidays, my wife and I again took advantage of the opportunity to watch two classic movies— A Christmas Carol (the Alistair Sim version released in 1951 and based on the Charles Dickens novel of 1843) and It’s a … Continue reading →

Posted in James R. Coggins | Tagged A Christmas Carol, Alistair Sim, angels, Charles Dickens, Classic movies, It's A Wonderful Life, Scrooge | 1 Comment

Words for Christmas Day by James R. Coggins

Posted on December 25, 2024 by jrcoggins

As has been my custom at Christmas in recent years, I offer today a couple of my poems. Since no one has time to read blogs at Christmas, it is the perfect time to share poetry, since no one reads … Continue reading →

Posted in James R. Coggins | Tagged Christmas, doctor, Faith, Joseph, Luke, Mary, old woman, Unbelief | 3 Comments

Light by James R. Coggins

Posted on December 18, 2024 by jrcoggins

Right at the beginning of creation, God said, “Let there be light,” and there was light. God “saw that the light was good, and he separated the light from the darkness” (Genesis 1:3-4 NIV). This was before God created the … Continue reading →

Posted in James R. Coggins | Tagged chaos, confusion, Creation, Darkness, darkness and light, depression, Heaven, Let there be light, light, Light of the world, Moses | 1 Comment

What Is the Lesson? by James R. Coggins

Posted on December 11, 2024 by jrcoggins

In all of the Ten Commandments, perhaps the statement that causes the most concern to modern readers is “I, the Lord your God, am a jealous God, punishing the children for the sin of the parents to the third and … Continue reading →

Posted in James R. Coggins | Tagged covet, innocent, jealous God, jealousy, justice, mercy, Ten Commandments | Leave a comment

Context by James R. Coggins

Posted on December 4, 2024 by jrcoggins

Exodus 20 is the place in the Bible where we find the “Ten Commandments.” When we read that chapter, we might find it hard to understand the context. Many of us have known about the Ten Commandments all our lives. … Continue reading →