Gaining a heart of wisdom
Scripture memory is one of the more challenging spiritual disciplines. Right now, I'm working on Psalm 27, and it's reminding me that there's another discipline that's even harder for me. Hear, O Lord, when I cry aloud; be gracious to me and answer me!You have said, 'Seek my face.'My heart says to you, 'Your face, Lord, do I seek.'"(Psalm 27:7-8) I… Continue reading Speak To The God Who Has Spoken To Us First
It's only June, but already our calendar is filling up with summer plans. Conversations about beach days and family camping trips have me wondering when we'll fit in the more mundane but necessary tasks of weeding the garden and mowing the lawn. When we had four barefoot boys running summer wild here on the hill,… Continue reading A Life Lived in the Presence of the Lord
It's testing week here on the hill! My oldest grandson and granddaughter have been here with me to take their end-of-year standardized tests. Remember those forms with all the little dots to be filled in with Number Two pencils? Testing is a big deal1 because it helps my son and daughter-in-law assess their children's educational… Continue reading What to Look for When Times of Testing Come
Having arrived and having now spent a few years in the season of the empty nest, I feel qualified to report on my findings. You may be surprised... I think we're always surprised when the good we anticipate turns out to be hard. Understand, I'm not saying that good and hard are opposites. However, in… Continue reading When You Want to Persevere in a Weary Season
Happy Pentecost Sunday! I wonder how we would respond today to a reenactment of the original Acts 2 Pentecost scene, complete with rushing wind, tongues of fire, and unscheduled utterances in various languages. The Early Church was building the plane as they flew it. There was no "earlier church" to set a precedent for what… Continue reading The Sure and Steady Pilot Light of Pentecost
Mother's Day can be rough. A day intended to honor and encourage mothers sometimes spirals into disappointment or feeds our feelings of inadequacy. We compare ourselves to other mothers (either in our real world or in the tiny, square pictures on our phones) and conclude that everyone else is doing it "better," having more fun,… Continue reading Wishing You a Happy, Holy Mother’s Day
A photo snapped at just the right time becomes a treasure, a way of holding on to a memory or a season. Twenty years ago, we were visiting friends at a Vermont lakeside cabin. The location was a childhood dream come true. We all swam together—until I realized that we were swimming with big, grumpy… Continue reading Practical Wisdom for an Unhurried Childhood
Happy Easter! While you're rushing around this morning to get ready for church and bake the ham, try to imagine what it must have been like for the disciples and friends of Jesus to encounter him, walking around in a living body. We can imagine their level of surprise, but the truth is that they… Continue reading If You Really Believe that He Rose from the Dead…
Over 25 years ago, I began reading the Bible with a friend who lived well into her nineties. Our friendship withstood the Proverbs 17:17 test (“A friend loves at all times”), enduring numerous life changes and geographical challenges as we extended a welcome to each other through our changing seasons. Sadly, a long-haul friendship like… Continue reading The Faith-Shaping Hospitality of Spiritual Friendship
As hard as it might be to believe, the "influencers" of my formative years were ordinary people. I actually knew them, ate at their tables, rode in their cars, and, in some cases, even slept in their guest rooms. I was formed and influenced by high school teachers, a nursing assistant, and an assortment of… Continue reading The Power and the Promise of Your Ordinary Life
Living Our Days 