You would never know it. Not by the welcoming smile or the calming spirit. You wouldn’t have a clue there was a time in Tamika Catchings’ life when she was shy, withdrawn and intimidated by the world around her. That description doesn’t fit the typical girl who would become the face of the WNBA.

But Tamika Catchings has never been one to conform to stereotypes. She was born with a mild hearing loss, which caused her to speak with an impediment and wear hearing aids (which she hates even to this day).

For years it’s been a dream, and soon it will become a reality. On Saturday, September 1, FCA will launch its new weekly radio program, Sharing the Victory, on more than 60 U.S. stations. Under the same name as this magazine, now celebrating its 25th anniversary, the radio program will offer an informing and inspirational half-hour program that will air every weekend.

There is a place where a person can go when life gets complicated — a place where he can feel completely at ease and safe from the big, bad world. It is a wonderful place where one feels at home not only physically, but also mentally and emotionally. Life is easy there. Life is good.

That place is called Comfort Zone. Yet, in spite of its welcoming title, it’s often located at the address of 1000 MissedBlessingsAndOpportunities Dr., in the city of Half-Lived, Life.

Dayton Moore remembers his comfort zone.

It was a testament to the reputation of Tony Dungy. When STV approached athletes, coaches and members of the media — both Christian and not — about lessons they’d learned from the Indianapolis Colts’ head coach, the average rate of return on the quote request was less than a day. That never happens.

But when it comes to Tony Dungy, it seems that people are more than willing, even eager, to express their awe and admiration for him — a man who has been through so much in so little time.

Is there really a spiritual component to being energized?

American soccer star Chris Klein, of the L.A. Galaxy, discusses his faith in Christ.

Five syringes discarded on the side of a Rocky Mountain road just outside of Boulder, Colo., were not exactly what I expected to see. Yet, as I cycled through some of the most scenic and challenging roads in all of Boulder, the site was unmistakable. I knew that many competitive riders used the high altitudes to train for races; but it appeared that it wasn’t just the altitude that would enhance their performances that day.

The world of sports has taken a beating this year.

“Eyes.” The word has a special meaning here. When the Rogers Mountaineers hear it, it’s as if an automatic instinct kicks in. 

“Eyes!” they echo back while in a crouched stance ready for the next command, their eyes staring right into their coach’s. But for 30 senior Mountaineer football players on this night — a warm, muggy, crystal-clear evening in the dog-days of August in the middle of Central Arkansas’ mountainous wilderness — there’s no need for the command. That’s because Ronnie Peacock, the head coach at Rogers High School, already has their full attention.

The locusts come every 17 years.

For Tommy Bowden, this bizarre phenomenon of nature remains a vivid memory from his days in West Virginia. Bobby Bowden, Tommy’s coaching-legend father, had moved the family from Alabama to Morgantown when he became the Mountaineers’ head football coach in 1970. Tommy, who played as a walk-on wide receiver for the Mountaineers from 1973 to ’76, still recalls the peculiar insects, with their freaky red eyes, thick black bodies and incessant drone. Every 17 years, they would crawl out of the ground by the millions to mate, spawn and die, all within several weeks.