Making a Commitment to Blessing

Making a Commitment to Blessing

The ping of a message changed my day: "Let's take food to a friend who needs encouragement." "Well, why not?" I asked myself, and began pondering the joyful outcome that always arises from random acts of blessing. I've always wanted to be an extrovert -- or at least an optimist. Failing at both, I'm thankful… Continue reading Making a Commitment to Blessing

Biddy Chambers: A Sacramental Life

Biddy Chambers: A Sacramental Life

Published in 1927, My Utmost for His Highest has sold more than 13 million copies and has never been out of print. Over the course of its 90+ year history, it has been translated into 40 different languages, and Oswald Chambers's unique and timeless wisdom is quoted far and wide. However, until recently, little thought has been… Continue reading Biddy Chambers: A Sacramental Life

Grandparenting: A High and Holy Calling

Grandparenting: A High and Holy Calling

Mothering is the calling and the gift that came to me even though I did not have either the wisdom or the optimism to pray for it. Twenty-four years into the journey, I'm still learning, and my kids are good teachers. Because my husband and I were "late bloomers" in a part of the world… Continue reading Grandparenting: A High and Holy Calling

A Guide for Living Well as an Introvert of Faith

A Guide for Living Well as an Introvert of Faith

Little Rock, Arkansas was the Sunday stop on the last leg of our cross-country trip. I don't recall the denomination of the church we visited, but I sure remember its personality: the two-handed handshakes, the over-the-top meet-n-greet . . . and the dear woman who sat next to me and kept touching my arm whenever… Continue reading A Guide for Living Well as an Introvert of Faith

The “More” You Were Made For

The More You Were Made For

“Again!” he demanded with a giggle, his eyes sparkling with joy and anticipation. And so we did it. We read the book again . . . and again. My grandson doesn’t look for thrills in the new and different. He finds his greatest joy in more and more of what he knows and loves. The… Continue reading The “More” You Were Made For

Musings: December 2017

Chopping up the last of my garden carrots and sweeping them into a snowy-day soup, I marveled at their color and texture, so much brighter and more tender than any store-bought veggie, even though they were yanked out of the ground by my exuberant grandson back in October. It's clear that these orange roots were… Continue reading Musings: December 2017

Toward a Sensitive Observance of Holy Innocents Day 2017

Holy Innocents Day

A few verses in Matthew are all that are granted to the tragedy of slain baby boys following the birth of Jesus. Christian Churches in the west have memorialized Herod’s paranoid panic as Holy Innocents’ Day, celebrated historically on December 28th, the fourth day of Christmas. In Medieval England, children were awakened to the solemnity… Continue reading Toward a Sensitive Observance of Holy Innocents Day 2017

The Marks of a Sinner’s Saintly Story

Story has a way of capturing the imagination. Biography brings theological principles, life lessons, and spiritual wisdom to life as I bear witness to the grittiness, lived-out in a transformed journey. Poor choices and besetting sins become cautionary sign posts that might just keep me from going over the same cliff. Karen Wright Marsh shares… Continue reading The Marks of a Sinner’s Saintly Story