The four weeks of Advent were meant to be a season of anticipation and self-examination as the church awaited the arrival of our savior king.  And then come the Christmas and Epiphany seasons of joyful awe and wonder.  All the prophecies about Immanuel came true as God in flesh visited...

We light a match, kindle fires,
  torch the place, burn it all down.
So angry at the world that You bequeathed
  in all its fallen frailty…angry at the other

not like us; anger that’s a smokescreen
  conveniently veiling our own ruined hearts.
What are we hiding in those...

“God said, ‘Let the land produce seed-bearing plants’…and it was so.  The land produced plants bearing seed and trees bearing fruit with seed.”       Genesis 1:11-13 

God is planning for a future that includes death and...

I have a newfound appreciation for reindeer. 

My husband and I agreed that the first Saturday of Advent would be the day to decorate our Christmas tree.  The tree itself was already up, and lights had been positioned for us by our indispensable girl Friday, Denise.  But we needed...

“A farmer went out to sow his seed….some fell along the path, and the birds came and ate it up.”    Matthew 13:4 

I know it isn’t the message of the parable exactly, but my heart goes out to the poor frustrated farmer. My son-in-law has been...

Sometimes in my mommying years I could be a bit of a bonehead.  I wasn’t very wise about self-care.  But I earnestly felt that my children were my primary mission field. I made that determination when I was pregnant with my first.  And when that pregnancy ended in the...

“You are my God.  My times are in your hands.”  Psalm 31:14-15

Are these words comforting or disturbing to you?  Do you feel tyrannized and victimized by time?  Do you get to the end of a day and feel disappointed by all that you tried to accomplish but...

No matter what our eyes see, God is still in charge.  He loves his creation…ALL of it.  I can worship Him best by not holding any of it in contempt. 

But that is SO much easier said than done.  If I look too long at the behavior of those in the world around me, I can...

Like so many, I was moved by the sight of 28,000 Haitian refugees huddled under a bridge at the border town of Del Rio, Texas.  The image of ICE agents on horseback whipping the asylum seekers was disturbing, to say the least.   

Writer Katja Vujic said in her article “How to...

“Do not fret because of those who are evil or be envious of those who do wrong:
For like the grass they will soon wither, like green plants they will soon die away.”...