Gaining a heart of wisdom
If your kids and grandkids haven't already gone back to school and if the retail merchandising freight train hasn't already whisked you into Halloween and Christmas, the imminent arrival of Labor Day weekend and the month of September have likely put you on notice that summer is coming to an end. Maybe you've spent your… Continue reading What to Pray When Your Whole Life Feels Out of Control
In the Pie Chart that is your life, how big is the slice devoted to prayer? I don't ask to induce guilt or to point the finger of condemnation. It's actually a question I'm asking myself, and it's been prompted by a statistic I just bumped into once again: Eleven percent of the book of Nehemiah… Continue reading Are You Satisfied with Your Prayer Life or Is Prayer Simply a Means to an End?
Today it's cornmeal rolls, a trip to our auto mechanic... oh, and this post.Yesterday was fourth grade at Union Elementary, roasting a chicken, and making soup.Every day has its list, and I'm sure that's true of you as well. As good citizens of American culture, we're hardwired for productivity, and the checklist serves as both… Continue reading What Does It Mean to Grow in Spiritual Wisdom? (And a Free Guided Meditation)
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
Do you ever wonder why you can recall banal song lyrics from your youth, but can't remember why you've walked into the family room? I'm learning from this affliction that if I want to commit something to memory or form some sticky habit that's important to me, I really have to work at it. I… Continue reading A Guided Meditation to Keep Your Heart from Wandering
The spring of 2019 showed up bleak and gray, but we barely noticed. The weight of waiting occupied every minute, with question marks bristling where daffodils had been delayed. An army of friends prayed for our family when we could not, waging war on our behalf, inquiring with kindness about obstacles that made no sense… Continue reading Do You Think There Is Such a Thing as a Successful Prayer Life?
My grandchildren are learning to sing hymns, and I love it! There's not much cuter than hearing a two-year-old's rendering of timeless theological truth. And whether or not he understands it today, the words are in his brain just as all those crazy advertising jingles from the seventies will forever be stuck in my own… Continue reading Rest: Growing in Our Understanding of the Words We Think We Know
This summer, I am learning to bake, prepare meals, and can our garden produce on a much smaller scale than ever before. A batch of whoopee pies makes about two dozen. That's approximately one picnic's worth in the days of four sons living at home, but an endless (and overwhelming!) supply for this empty nest.… Continue reading Why Does Feeding People Make Us Feel So Happy?
Prayer is hard work, perhaps because it's hard to quantify. I can spend fifteen minutes praying or fifteen minutes cleaning the bathroom. The results of one are far more obvious than the other--at least in the moment. But what about the long term "results?" And exactly what do we mean when we talk about "results"… Continue reading Do You Ever Have the Feeling that Prayer Doesn’t Really Work?
Brushing crumbs off the dining room table, I plunk down my portable pile: Bible, journal, devotional book, another Bible, and they all land with a THUD. The pens go skittering across the table, mirroring my scattered thoughts. Then, pushing my mug of tea out of the danger zone, I settle into reading, my favorite of… Continue reading What Are Spiritual Disciplines and Why Are They So Important?
Living Our Days 