Gaining a heart of wisdom
One day, I stopped apologizing for my boring salvation story. While it's true that "I once was lost but now am found," there was no dramatic Damascus Road turnaround for me, no potty mouth to disinfect or cigarettes to snuff out. The real miracle, though, was that God landed with grace in the unseen muck… Continue reading Hope for the Hearts of Saints and Scoundrels
Sunday Scripture Every Sunday morning I hunker down at a low table with the four and five year olds at my church. Everyone wants a blue chair, and there's almost always a tussle about something, but eventually, we put the attendance stickers on the bulletin board and settle down to business. There are crayons and… Continue reading The Purposes of God Fulfilled in the Blue Chairs
God will not hold you accountable for what you do not know. This is good news. It is true of the unreached people groups from Operation World, and it is true of you and me in our earlier, perhaps untaught, and perhaps more reckless, less scripturally grounded years. Everyone to whom much was given much will… Continue reading Sunday Scripture ~ Luke 12:48
Blessed are those who read Gospel conversations, divine pronouncements, and follow the trail of Truth back to the nature of God. "Greater than the Temple," "Lord of the Sabbath," His words revealed Divine Prerogatives and a set of priorities wholly out of step with the elite. No Mr.-Rogers-with-a-beard, Jesus used the sharp edge of sarcasm… Continue reading Red Letters–Fiery Words
Among the assorted ranks of those who practice journaling, you can record me in the column labeled "intimidated." Observation, application, and interpretation of my reading primes the pump, but never are my entries particularly stirring or insightful. My pages are scattered with partial outlines, first and second drafts of biblically-inspired poetry, and lists of questions… Continue reading Practical Help for Journaling as a Spiritual Discipline
“Wait a minute, ” I interrupted. “Read that again. Is that really in Isaiah?” My husband and I are reading through the Bible again this year — together and out loud. Aside from the challenge of actually being in the same room (or the same vehicle) at the same time for this daily discipline and delight,… Continue reading Can Busy Mums Really Find Time to Spend with God? (Part 2)
Sunlight slanted through the passenger-side window, and a light breeze lifted the pages of the Bible that was propped against the steering wheel to make room for the notebook in my lap. Middle school band practice always lasted 45 minutes -- not long enough to bother going home. And since the older children were all… Continue reading Can Busy Mums Really Find Time to Spend with God? (Part 1)
Lectio divina, the practice of "sacred reading," brings to mind images of flickering candles and meditative silences broken only by the turn of a page or the scratch of a pen on paper. The flickering candle I can manage, but my dining room table "command post" is where just about any kind of reading happens at my… Continue reading Sacred Reading – Hands On
I've heard it many times and from the most unexpected sources: "I try to read the Bible, but . . . it doesn't seem to say anything to me. I don't understand what I'm reading. It doesn't help me, so I end up quitting . . " Set this response beside David's from Psalm 119:… Continue reading Knowable, Necessary, and Enough
Living Our Days 