Beautiful words were spoken by my pastor during worship yesterday. His Christmas message series is titled “Responding to the Voice of God” and yesterday’s message was from Luke’s Gospel, recounting Mary’s praise that we refer to as The Magnificat. In it, Mary pours out these beautiful words to her cousin…
Over the summer, while reading Jon Acuff’s Start: Punch Fear in the Face, I started a fear journal. This is not about my fear of bugs or missing commas. No, it’s specifically cataloging my fears about my writing life. I’ve found it helpful to write down the crazy to get…
OK, I confess: I’ve gone crafty. But it’s for a good cause! My friend Angel is an artist, and she is developing a community art project called The Blessing Tree. She’s inviting Christ-followers to create a leaf to add to this tree for her November show, and I wanted to…
My memory is broken. Too often, information goes in, roams around a bit, and then slips away in the still moments when I am distracted with other things. Or it goes in and sticks around, but hides in the folds of my heart, my soul, tucking itself away when I…
A few months ago, a physical therapy group that specialized in sports rehab started a campaign to promote its services to the general public. The tag line was something like, “Everyone’s an athlete.” The images showed a casual cyclist or someone lifting heavy boxes. The idea was to associate everyday…
Warmth poured out to us from our first moments in the Romanian Orthodox Church Saint Dimitri the New Church in Frederick, Colorado. You may wonder if that’s an oxymoron—warmth and orthodoxy. Not in this case. The giving of smiles and hugs and fabric leis conveyed friendly hospitality—as did the rush…
“Looking at the stars always makes me dream.” —Vincent Van Gogh Dreaming out loud is not easy. It is casting a vision for what might be. It is casting your heart into the world to catch what has captured you. It gives voice to the depths of your heart and…
One of my most favorite days of the year has arrived: summer reading kick-off day. Seriously. My sister and I plan for it each year. I would make snacks if food were allowed in the library. Sadly, there was a tiny little black raincloud hovering over this year’s outing. You…
Of the 12 books in my Beach Retreat 2013 stack, I’ve ventured into three, plus the Bible. The first was a nonfiction about a lit professor who hosted Jane Austen book clubs throughout Latin America over the course of a year. Her commentary on reading’s benefits and luxury makes me…
recent comments