Gaining a heart of wisdom
If you are celebrating Easter today with an emphasis on the resurrection of Christ, if the joy in your heart has more to do with an empty tomb than a full basket of chocolate eggs, if you can articulate the wonder of God the Son dying and then coming fully back to life, it's probably… Continue reading Easter: God’s Powerful Invitation to Live in Unquenchable Hope
When the Council of Nicaea met in 325, they decreed that Easter, the resurrection of Jesus, is to be celebrated on the first Sunday after the first full moon that falls on or after the first day of spring. With the stroke of a pen, Easter and spring would forever hold hands. Since I live in… Continue reading When You Celebrate Easter, You Celebrate Resurrection
I keep hearing this statistic, and it's like a pebble in my shoe: Regular Scripture reading is the most consistent factor contributing to spiritual health. It ranked higher than anything else, and it makes abundant sense when we realize that God has promised to speak to the believing heart through his Word. Regular Scripture reading… Continue reading Come Close To The Story: A Free Lenten Devotional
Happy Easter! We celebrate this holiday in the Western world with ham dinners and joyful anthems. The nod-to-Godders dust off their Sunday best for their annual hour in the pew, and children brave the barely-spring temperatures to go in search of eggs filled witih slightly frozen jelly beans and marshmellow peeps. If you travel in… Continue reading Happy Easter! Now Go and Practice Resurrection
Waiting for spring, hanging off the northeast end of the U.S. mainland, it’s a challenge to get into an Easter frame of mind. The dark is still holding sway over the light, and resurrection-thinking requires a muscular faith. Although the calendar tells me that spring will come, this hope in a future date can seem like a… Continue reading When You Are Wondering if Spring Will Ever Come
Jesus is risen!He is risen, indeed!And, today, as we affirm that glorious truth with our sunrise breakfasts and Easter lilies, with our celebratory singing and ham dinners, we're coming close to the heartbeat of God. For most of us, it will be a busy day, so let's fortify ourselves with truth strong enough to carry… Continue reading What Do I Learn About God from Easter?
Hanging off the northeast end of the U.S. mainland, waiting for evidence that spring has, indeed, arrived, it’s a challenge to get into an Easter frame of mind. The dark is still holding sway over the light, and resurrection-thinking requires a muscular faith. Pressing into a Truth that challenges me to fathom the unfathomable, I… Continue reading The Whispered Hope of Easter: A Promise of Eternal Spring
Sunday Scripture Yesterday, the earthly remains of my Uncle Paul were committed to the earth, ashes to ashes, dust to dust. The Canadian border is still closed, so I was unable to be there, but my dear Auntie Dawn attended to that by including one of my poems in the program, and it will be… Continue reading A Fond Father’s Day Farewell to a Family Patriarch
Sunday Scripture On the first Sunday after the first full moon following the first day of spring, it's a pretty sure thing that we'll be having ham for dinner. When it comes to Easter, don't confuse the arbitrariness of the celebration's timing with the laser focus of its purpose. Easter is a celebration of resurrection.… Continue reading The Startling Difference the Resurrection Makes in Your Following Life
Even with a ham in the oven and the house mostly presentable, my Easter bonnet is all askew this year. Is it possible to celebrate Easter in isolation? Can we really observe the highest holy day of our church calendar without rousing hymns and communal breakfasts and the perfume of Easter lilies in the sanctuary?… Continue reading A Reasonable Response to the Miracle of Resurrection
Living Our Days 