We sat in her living room. Through the wall of windows we see white cottony wisps of mist settle over rolling hills. Orange leaves burst through a sea of green. Summer changes to fall. The end of a season happens right before us as we discuss the end of a season. Blue-gray skies complement fall colors and some of our emotions. Despite the fall colors coming through, blue, […]
A government shut-down. A family killed in a rock-slide. Children addicted to porn. Christians and churches being attacked. Teen pleads guilty to murdering a 10 year old girl. These are just a handful of the articles that flash across my screen this morning. Some I read. Some I can't. And the scary world isn't just […]
There is a change of seasons going on here. A change that has me thinking about other things than writing this week. So I'm going back to my storehouse of posts. This is my post from exactly one year ago... I watched the kids from the neighborhood play under the street lamp...unwilling to let go […]
Last week there was a battle between my son and myself. After the heat went down and the boiling turned to simmering, I took my son's hand and we prayed. It felt hard to take that hand and pray in the midst of hurting hearts but it happened. I've been wondering...why was it so hard? […]
Ruthie wakes up early and stumbles down to the living room with her light-up ladybug. Her little chubby fingers hold up the favorite bedtime friend to project stars on the ceiling above us. Amethyst light through star holes cast the dreamy image of a night sky above me. But it is 6 am and I’m about to endure a […]
I drive over the top of the hill and come down the other side. The earth opens up wide before me. Highway 70 between Hermann and Columbia, MO is lonely. If it weren't for the corn, I could be in a desert. But here in this one spot I rush up what feels like a mountain compared to the flatland […]
Did that title resonate with you? Does your heart long...even ache...to see and understand God's work in your life? Those who are in Christ, I believe, naturally desire that. I'm on vacation this week so...giving you an old story from the past year. It is a timeless reminder of our need to expect to see God's […]
I sit as far back as I can in the row of pews without looking too unsocial. I volunteer at a Vacation Bible School (VBS) each summer and this is the week. This year I'm saved from rigorous planning. All I have to do is show up and work in the nursery. It's painless really. But this is also […]
Do you ever need strength and courage to live just an ordinary day? Sometimes I feel like I'm washing dishes all day. Like today. I could almost promise you that I stood at the sink non-stop. I'm not complaining really. I'm thankful that I have dishes to wash because that means we had food to eat. […]
I love my country and the people who serve and have served me...us...with their lives. I join today with others with thanks to God for our freedoms and our nation. We are blessed. But I can't help to think each Fourth of July about how I feel a bit strange declaring our independence. Is it because […]
Advent Joy isn’t shallow or sentimental—it is rooted in the appearing of Christ. When Scripture speaks of Christ being manifested, it means that God has made Himself clearly seen, known, and encountered in order to save. “The grace of God has appeared, bringing salvation…” — Titus 2:11, ESV The Child in the manger is the […]
Where do you long for Christ’s Peace to enter your story this week? Or have you given up hope for that? Perhaps it would be good for you and me to remember Jesus' words about the kind of peace He gives. "Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. Not as the […]