Unfinished Business
January 24, 2019 — I published a book yesterday. I’d been looking forward to it with eager joy. But when I saw it for sale on amazon.com, I froze. My brain jammed. My stomach constricted. When I began to thaw, I was confronted by my fear to publish the following story.
A Living Witness to Love
An agnostic friend recently asked me, “Why do you want me to change? Why do you care what I believe?”
Humility or Pride
When the hard walls of opinions, judgments and unrighteous anger rise up in me against pain, violations, injustice, foolishness and selfish immaturity, I might be able to spout off in ways that persuade others of the righteousness of my position. I might be able to suggest solutions. I might be very articulate and convince my self and others— and I might lose God’s presence and purpose in the process. That’s because pride is the mortar cementing those hard walls within my heart and soul.
Water
Reverie from a February Day, 2018: It’s warming up today; as earth begins to thaw, thick clouds of fog settle over the ground and icicles drip steadily from the eves. Bits and chunks are drop to the deck outside my window; giant water drops are splatter and slide down windowpanes wet with condensation
Hot and Cold
Dense clouds have dropped down, hugging the earth with a thick haze. In yesterday’s sunshine, autumn’s tall dry grasses waved above the snow warming the whiteness of winter with hints of tawny gold. Today, all color is muted. The edges of familiar tree-bark-browns fade away; treetops dissolve into fog. It looks as if a paintbrush has […]
Seeking Joy
Recently, my husband fell and broke two bones in his foot. My care taking responsibilities increased and I began to feel tired, overwhelmed and insecure. Discouragement began to gnaw at my heart until I countered it and encouraged myself by reading of a list of antidotes to stress, tension, worry, fear, anger, anxiety and depression. […]
A Reflection on Grief
Choosing life requires facing grief and moving through it. It took time and courage to learn to ride into and beyond recurring waves of painful emotion and memory.
Hunger for God
Here’s an excerpt from a letter I wrote last April; the first paragraphs explain why I’m posting it now. Last Sunday I visited a grand old church.
Reasons to Praise
Today I longed to praise God our loud. When no words came, I began to list personal answers to prayer like, “I will praise You because of ____ and____ and ___. ” Once started, my list grew. It is still growing, but here, without order or plan, are some of my own reasons to praise a “God from Whom all blessings flow.”
Father, Lord Jesus and Holy Spirit, I will praise You because
You give words, language and books. You must like talking, reading and writing. So do I.
You give music and tell us to make music and sing.
Taking Inventory
Feeling quite uncertain and unusually self-protective before a difficult meeting, I asked the Lord for help. The thought to read Psalm 51-64 popped into my head. While reading, David’s vivid words about his enemies, and about fear, trembling, betrayal, and trusting in God prompted these heart-searching questions.
The Fourth Sunday in Advent 2016
Today the sun shone brightly on the snow. Our Advent candles were dimmed by the brilliant light warming our windows, but the…
