Gaining a heart of wisdom
I am a utilitarian knitter with mittens, dish cloths, and the occasional scarf as my only output, but even so, one of the things that is always in my sturdy, grab-and-go backpack is a pair of knitting needles holding my current knitting project. It may go for months untouched, but I value any time that… Continue reading For the Creative Soul
“Even my sink is full today!” I grouched, pouring another wire basket of tomatoes into the path of the running water. There were cucumbers on the counter, beans in the garden that needed to be picked . . . and no time to do it all. I love my garden -- although sometimes this is… Continue reading The Burden Is Light
I really didn't think I needed this book. It was written for procrastinators, for people who need help in Taming the To-Do-List. If anything, I'm an "ante-crastinator," too faint-hearted to wait until the last minute, who goes into panic mode just thinking about the potential of going into panic mode. But then I read Glynnis… Continue reading Don’t Put It Off
Just this morning I penned gift number 4,013 into my gratitude journal where, for four years, I have been recording everyday blessings: candle light before dawn; everyone home for dinner; first apple pie from our very own tree. Eileen Spinelli has created a rhyming picture book that will set readers onto the path of remembering all… Continue reading Everyday Blessings
In a life time of reading, we make friends with a variety of authors, usually total strangers to us in real life, but nonetheless, known and beloved, because we have come to know them intimately through their books. In Writers to Read, Douglas Wilson invites his readers into the circle of friends he has formed… Continue reading 9 Names that Belong on Your Bookshelf
For me, it was a case of the right book at the right time when Girl Meets Change by Kristen Strong showed up in my mailbox. I am walking through a season of boys coming and boys going; setting the table each night with only four plates . . . or hearing that we may possibly need nine plates;… Continue reading Change: Friend or Enemy?
I love a decisive verb, and when it appears in the setting of a solid, declarative sentence? Well, so much the better. When autumn rolls around my mind returns to the pronouncements in Isaiah 12, because I studied and memorized it in the season of bright leaves and stiff breezes. The prophet's bracing words stood up to… Continue reading Giving Thanks Is a Choice
The prosperity gospel is deep in my bones -- not that I technically hold with any kind of "blab it and grab it" theology or the idea that God owes me a BMW. I do know better than that, but truly, I just want to be able to tell you that God has always answered… Continue reading Embrace the Detour
Standing at the water’s edge with the big fluffy towel is one of the perks of being Gram. I can wrap Raymond from head to toe in warmth and snuggle him in my beach chair while his mum and dad enjoy some grown-up swim time. The problem is that, these days, Raymond is not interested… Continue reading Held
Two weeks into the Beatitudes with my Sunday School class, and my ear is finally becoming accustomed to the cadence of another Kingdom, one in which those who are meek and mournful are pronounced fortunate -- even happy. All of this is a fitting backdrop for reading Joshua Choonmin Kang's Spirituality of Gratitude. His collection… Continue reading The Language of Thanksgiving
Living Our Days 