Gaining a heart of wisdom
What if every little person could grow up knowing that she is lovely because God loves her? What if everything in the sky and under the sky were suddenly revealed as mirrors, reflecting God's huge "I LOVE YOU." What if the Bible could be understood NOT as a book of rules or as a dusty collection… Continue reading Every Story Whispers His Name
My sixteen-year old and I are laboring over chemistry together these days, and his textbook has decreed that we are not to move on to Chapter 5 until he is confident in balancing equations. We're not going anywhere right away, so . . . We have spent this week with a printed worksheet of fifty chemical equations,… Continue reading Hard-wired for Awe
Even in the mid-90’s, no one was still listening to records anymore, but, for me, there is still some Christmas music that must be heard against the crackling of needle on vinyl. Classical guitar, organ and chimes, brass quintets – all instrumental arrangements of ancient carols whose lyrics, inscribed in memory like grooves on the… Continue reading Don’t Be Afraid – Just Believe
Pastor and author Kyle Idleman did an informal survey via social media with just one question. "Finish this sentence: Jesus became real when . . ." The hundreds of responses he received, some general ("I had no one else to turn to.") and some specific ("My husband was killed in a car accident."), could be… Continue reading Filling Empty Things
There is something so motivational (and yet ominous) about the truth that we become like what we behold. In the routine of life, I may go through days half asleep. Or worse yet, I may come to the startling realization that I’m paying attention to all the wrong things. This is why I am thankful every Christmas that the… Continue reading Behold Christmas — What Do You See?
For many, the Christmas story stands alone, lifted with huge parentheses out of the New Testament -- maybe delivered in Linus's hushed boy soprano, and then tucked away with the durable resin nativity set and the white twinkly lights until next year. It's a great story, so it's easy to see why authors of every creed… Continue reading Words About THE WORD: Recommended Reads for Christmas
Out loud and together. That's how my patient husband and I are reading through the Bible this year, and, believe it or not, we're just about on schedule! Right now we are taking in the book of Acts in great gulps, two or three chapters at a time interspersed with the corresponding epistles. That breathless pace… Continue reading To the End of the Earth
When we think of God, and angels, and The Angel, we suppose ineffable light. So there is surprise in the air when we see him bring to Mary, in her lit room, a gift of darkness. From "The Overshadow" Accompanied by Angels According to Luke 1:35, the mystery of the incarnation happened in shade, and… Continue reading Made Flesh
A nursing home can be a pretty grim place on a holiday, but a one-year-old with smiley eyes who is practicing his walking in the hallways is certainly a game changer. The hard journey of my mother's transition to a care facility has never been harder than this first big holiday without her in our… Continue reading Make It Sparkle!
Proverbs has always been a challenging read for me. My brain wants to make outlines, and it searches in vain for a tidy way to summarize the truth of a chapter. Proverbs 1 and 2 cooperate nicely: wisdom. However, the following chapters veer off into multiple topics, and my takeaway from reading this valuable wisdom literature is that… Continue reading The Beginning of Wisdom
Living Our Days 