Gaining a heart of wisdom
"Let's try again," I said, starting the music and extending my hands with a hopeful smile. Who knew that it would be so hard for a class of first graders to agree together on clapping the beat of a simple song? For some, the process was as natural as breathing, but not for everyone. By… Continue reading Learning to Find the Rhythm of Prayer
I love it when our kids call home. Often, it becomes a three-way (or even four-way) conversation, but sometimes our sons call and ask specifically to speak with their dad. When that happens, I know there's likely a decision in the pipeline, or they're working through a wrinkle in a relationship and want to vent… Continue reading Listening In to One Side of a Father/Son Conversation
When Elisabeth Elliot's second husband Addison Leitch was dying of cancer, he suffered intense physical pain. Even more devastating to both of them, though, was the crisis of faith that accompanied his final suffering. Elisabeth wrote that the weight of sorrow from witnessing his daily despair was one of the deepest trials of her life.… Continue reading Strength and Comfort from an Ancient Prayer
Perhaps we are all in a Good Friday mindset during this Holy Week of 2020. Many are suffering losses, both big and small, and whatever our physical disposition, our worlds have become smaller, and The World itself seems smaller to us after having watched an invisible virus find its way into nearly every country and… Continue reading A Prayer for Good Friday: The Light and the Glory
Andrew loved my lemon pound cake muffins. He constructed fat sandwiches from the chopped vegetables and the sliced meat and cheese I had packed in a cooler for the twenty-mile journey by lobster boat to his grandparents' island cottage. "These are killer!" he declared, and as I thanked him, my hand rested on his shoulder… Continue reading Praying Parents and the Trauma of Addiction
It's tempting, LORD, to put my faith in your gifts Rather than in you alone. Good health enables early rising, satisfying productivity; Strong legs:Â a swift gait; Clarity of thought:Â a coherent paragraph; An understanding friend:Â the comfort of being known. I wonder though, Could I share the Story? Advance the Kingdom? Or even get… Continue reading Prayer for a New Year
When is the last time you walked into a room full of women and just fully enjoyed everyone? The talkative and the more reticent? The natural leader and the sweetheart with the gift of helps? The carefully coiffed and manicured and the all-natural girl without a speck of makeup? My natural tendency is to compare,… Continue reading You Can Shatter the Habit of Comparison
Whether we’re making meals, changing diapers, or shuttling kids to baseball practice, parents are doers. Always in protective mode, we apply sunscreen and Band-Aids as needed, and when we hit a wall with a need we can’t meet ourselves, we consult with the experts. Long before parents could ransack Google or WebMD for medical advice,… Continue reading How Parenting Exposes Our Need for Faith
"Let the beauty of the Lord our God be upon us, And establish the work of our hands for us; Yes, establish the work of our hands." (Psalm 90:17) In his book Life Together, Dietrich Bonhoeffer reminded his readers that “without the burden and labor of the day, prayer is not prayer, and without prayer,… Continue reading Sunday Scripture ~ Psalm 90:17
The recent biographical movie featuring the life of J.R.R. Tolkien captures him saying, "After all, what's language for? It's not just the naming of things, is it? It's the life blood of a culture, a people." Language and the way we use it reveals our thinking and our character. The structure of a language reveals… Continue reading The Gift of Language and the God Who Speaks
