Gaining a heart of wisdom
It's become a cliché, really. "Wait on God." In the glib heart, it's an all purpose non-answer. It's what we say when we don't know what to say. In Waiting on God: What to Do When God Does Nothing, Wayne Stiles opens the lens of Scripture to take in the Old Testament life of Joseph and de-formulizes that… Continue reading Wisdom for Waiting: Ten Lessons from the Life of Joseph
As a child of the Cold War era, I learned a chilling fascination for anything to do with "The Iron Curtain." When my high school music teacher started spending her summer vacations on short-term missions trips to Eastern Europe, I was certain that I, too, would be called to minister in lands closed to the… Continue reading Brother Andrew: Still Opening Doors
I have the best of intentions. I've backed them up with a nifty notebook: divided into sections for the days of the week; pages of personalized prayer requests; an alphabetized list of missionaries (Can I make it through the list from memory at 3 a.m. on a wakeful night?); even a few answers to prayer,… Continue reading All Nations
My heart is becoming more elastic these days – not tougher, I hope, but more willing to be stretched, more willing to love on less-than-ideal terms, to accept conditions that I would not prefer, and to take the risk of loving anyway. As happens so often, the Apostle Paul is leading the way, and I… Continue reading For a Short Time
Knowing God by J.I. Packer was the first book of theology that I bought and read simply because I wanted to. It had not been assigned by any professor, and it was not related to anything that I was teaching at the time. I wanted to read it because it sounded like an invitation to… Continue reading J.I. Packer: Strategies for Living
During their years of captivity, the people of Israel needed encouragement. The prophet Zephaniah reminded them of God's presence in their midst, His power to save, and the fact that He rejoiced in His love for them, a joy that was expressed in song! "The Lord your God in your midst, The Mighty One, will save; He will… Continue reading New Girl. New Song.
Slowly, slowly, she made her painful way through the kitchen. Her eyesight dimming, she had not yet detected my presence there in the room, so I could watch unnoticed and register every discouraged sigh. Then, with sad resignation, these words: “I don’t know why this has to be so hard.” Sadly, I realized that it… Continue reading It’s Time
Reading Warren Wiersbe, I understand how my kids feel when I glance into a closet and pull out the basketball they "can't find." It was there all along, but they just didn't see it. In his writing Dr. Wiersbe pulls outlines and alliteration out of Scripture -- rather than imposing them upon the text --… Continue reading Hebrews — “Be Confident!”
When Esteban, the church parking lot attendant, was charged with heresy, no one took the accusation seriously -- at least not at first. He viewed his trial as one more platform for The Story, and with a very influential audience. No one could have predicted the crowd becoming a mob, and his listeners becoming his… Continue reading Your Story Matters
Here in Maine, the birds play it safe -- and so do the bugs. A short summer means a short life-cycle, so blend in and live! That's why a cardinal or an oriole at the feeder is a show-stopper, and the annual flurry of monarch butterflies will stop my tomato picking and leave me standing… Continue reading Books for a Backyard Safari
Living Our Days 