We often reminisce on the last conversations we had with our loved ones before they departed for the golden shore on the other side of eternity. What was weighing so heavily on their hearts that they had to talk about? What were the most important last words they shared with those closest to them? Read Entire Post…
It was the last day of Calvary Fellowship’s Vacation Bible School, 2008. My class of four-year-old “Gentle Bunnies” listened intently (well, most of them!) as the story time teacher presented a flannel board account of the Good Samaritan.
“As for me, it is good to be near God. I have made the sovereign Lord my refuge; I will tell of all your deeds.” Psalm 73:28
The other night I was doing the Bible study I made on the women’s retreat (great workshop by Elizabeth Griffin!) with my 10-year-old son Nic. I had been praying for God to minister to his heart about his temper (which is much like his mother’s) and was so grateful to see God’s answer. Read Entire Post…
I was once driving along in my car and I pulled up behind a truck that had seen better days. It was the kind of truck that by its very appearance caused you to want to know the driver, you just know there is a story there.
In Romans 12:13 the Word tells us to “Practice hospitality.”
I have always been up for a good, wholesome party, so this is not a difficult command for me. My husband Jay and I like to host gatherings in our house – not only do we enjoy it, but we feel like the Lord gave us this particular home for this purpose among others. We live close to church on 2/3 of an acre and our backyard is an awesome place for kids to play, and though not large, our home accommodates a lot of people comfortably because of its floor plan. Read Entire Post…
Giving this blog the same title as a well-written book may seem unusual, but stick with me; I’ll explain.
The book I’m referring to, The Will of God as a Way of Life by Whitworth College professor Jerry Sittser, is one that we’d all do well to read, talk about, and apply to our lives. (Or, as Eugene Peterson points out in the Forward, to read twice, the second time more slowly.) The book is not a new one (it was first published in 2000), rather, it’s more like a sturdy companion ready for rediscovery by readers ready for a challenge. Its premise? That seeking out the will of God for our lives is much simpler than we make it out to be. Read Entire Post…
Visiting Cannon Beach, Oregon, last week with my family, I walked out onto the shore and my feet sank into the warm, white sand. Words from Psalm 139:17–18 came to mind:
How precious to me are your thoughts, O God!
How vast is the sum of them!
Were I to count them,
They would outnumber the grains of sand…
My husband Ray and I recently took care of three little boys from church while their parents went out for dinner. With our two adult sons grown and on their own, we were blessed to spend time with these little ones. At one point during our evening together, the boys poured out a bin of Legos onto the carpet and I sat down with them, asking about the different Lego men, the weapons, the spaceships. The boys seemed preoccupied, searching quietly through the pile for their favorite characters while I continued my one-way conversation. Read Entire Post…
This title bears repeating and for me stirs up many conversations with my Lord, how about you? American Playwright and Novelist Thornton Niven Wilder (1897-1975) wrote a play called, “The Angel that Troubled the Waters,” which is loosely based on John 5:1-4, the story of the pool of Bethesda. The play tells of a physician who comes periodically to the pool of Bethesda, hoping to be the first in the water and be healed of his melancholy …when the angel appears and troubles the water. Read Entire Post…
For a long time I didn’t connect with others at church because of a fear of being real. I thought that if others knew what a terrible example of a Christian I was they would be appalled.