Gaining a heart of wisdom
Sunday Scripture Today, we begin Holy Week with the waving of palms and the well-loved story about a borrowed colt, an adoring crowd, cloaks thrown on the ground, and a hero's welcome. Caught in the present moment, Jesus's disciples were likely imagining that this was IT, that this event was surely the climax of all… Continue reading Palm Sunday: Celebrating a Day of Triumph and Tears
When I am in the process of turning bright red tomatoes into fragrant and delicious spaghetti sauce in my kitchen, I’m usually working with inexact measures. The recipe may call for nine cups of tomato puree, but my garden produces whatever seems right in that season. Measuring the herbs that flavor the sauce is definitely… Continue reading Commit Your Minutes to the Hard Work of Reaching Your Goal
Sunday Scripture One of the few relics that has survived my youth is a small golden cross, mailed to me by a dear aunt and uncle I met only once. Whenever I wear it, I think about their unlikely generosity, their completely uncalled-for interest in an awkward pre-teen. And in this Lenten season, I wonder,… Continue reading Carrying Death but Manifesting Life? How in the World Does this Work?
Right from the outset, the years of parenting grown children should come with a big sign hanging over them, a huge and joyful banner that reads: Welcome to the Season of Reorganization! Suddenly, a house that was stretching at the seams with every bedroom full of stuffed animals and noisy life finds itself with three… Continue reading Parenting Adult Children? Welcome to the Season of Reorganization!
Among the pesky distractions that accompany an online ministry are the hackers who invade and imitate, even going so far as to steal accounts for their own nefarious purposes. Of course, all I have to do is open my Bible or read a few missionary biographies to put my own ministry woes into proper perspective.… Continue reading How Will You Overcome the Challenges Life Throws at You?
There's nothing like a slow and careful read of a "familiar" text in the Bible to make me feel as if I've never seen it before. I'm working on 2 Corinthians 4 in the car, and the sticky part for me is, as usual, one of Paul's lists: hard pressed but not crushed; perplexed but… Continue reading What Does It Mean to Be “Fully Alive” as a Human Being?
When Jesus singled out Peter, James, and John to sit with him in the Garden of Gethsemane, his instructions to them were brief and straightforward: "Remain here and watch." He asked them to stay in a particular place and be on guard, to be awake and be with him. Mark 14:35-36 describes Jesus's pleading prayer… Continue reading How Can We Avoid Putting a Bandaid on Others’ Grief and Pain?
I printed maps for my students showing the Mediterranean, the Red Sea, and colorful arrows tracing Israel's itinerary as refugees and fugitive slaves. I wanted them to see the utter impracticality of the route--and yet it was chosen by God on purpose, and Scripture tells us in no uncertain terms that God led Israel into… Continue reading Do You Trust God to Meet You in Your Wilderness Journey?
“Do you always read to your kids like that?” she queried. My friend was referring to my rendition of a Dr. Seuss classic delivered at tongue-twister speed from a rocking chair in the church nursery: “Would you like them in a house?Would you like them with a mouse?Would you eat them in a box?Would you… Continue reading How To Cultivate a Healthy Relationship with Time When You’re Hardwired for Hurry
Bread dough the color of molasses yielded to the pressure of my working fist. Fold, press, turn, repeat, and soon I lost count of how many times I had kneaded the fragrant lump. With the recipe calling for three hundred repetitions, I began to wonder... Three hundred? Really? Switching to the heel of my hand,… Continue reading Create the Right Conditions for Spiritual Growth: Trust the Recipe
Living Our Days 