We lean across the table, straining to hear each other. "What are your prayer requests?" the leader asks, pen poised above her notebook. We speak hesitantly into the holiness of being heard. A hurting relative. A wayward child. Relational struggles. Fears. Change. Outside, we manage. We persevere. But here, around this table, our vulnerability weaves … Continue reading Prayer Requests
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Exposed to Hope
Here’s an article I wrote for Gospel-Centered Discipleship. I hope it blesses you. https://gcdiscipleship.com/article-feed/exposed-to-hope-the-evangelism-of-welcome
Sorting the Silver
When I was a teenager I worked at a local camp, running the snack bar and helping in the kitchen. One of the tasks was drying and sorting the silverware. After a large tray of knives, forks and spoons came out of the industrial dishwasher it was dumped onto a counter lined with towels, where … Continue reading Sorting the Silver
Choices and Limitations
“He’s 3, with 32 years of experience” is how I describe my son Ben these days. Still stymied by tic-tac-toe and overjoyed by a jar of peanut butter, yet he's got over three decades of living under his belt. Last winter we took a long car ride, spent a night in a hotel and took … Continue reading Choices and Limitations
The Door Behind Us
We squeezed into our airplane seats, Ben poking eagerly at the seatback video screen. The familiar safety instructions started and I turned my gaze to the window as we rolled down the taxiway. "Your closest exit may be behind you," the perky flight attendant reminded us. Why? Because sometimes our focus is so fixed ahead … Continue reading The Door Behind Us
A Mother to Me, Too
[Apostle Paul, c. 1633, Rembrandt, oil on canvas, Kunsthistorisches Museum [Public domain] / Wikimedia] “You're Bill’s wife!” she exclaimed, holding out her hand. “And what do you do?” “I stay home,” I replied, mentally kicking myself for feeling foolish. “That’s the hardest work of all!” she chirped, scanning the room for someone more interesting. “I'm … Continue reading A Mother to Me, Too
A Lingering Song
I roll over, open my eyes to a new day. My heart breathes thanks, and I notice it again: a lingering song. I have awakened to a phrase or a chorus most days now for a number of years, seeping into my consciousness with morning's light. Frequently a line from Sunday's worship, sometimes from a … Continue reading A Lingering Song
Under the Eaves
Under the eaves I sit, watching the rain wash the darkness. Knowing it breaks and nourishes the ground it fills, cleansing in its course. A breeze cools, fingers my hair. Vanishes. I breathe in the sweet, damp air while the rain falls down, flows down, always down its way, its design, refreshing and softening the … Continue reading Under the Eaves
A Sudden Spring
Here in the far northern part of the U.S., spring arrives in a rush. Mere days after leaves start to appear, small and tightly curled, they burst forth, transforming the forest from stark gray to startling, glowing green. Our neighbors, who a few weeks ago were boiling maple sap into syrup in the snow, are … Continue reading A Sudden Spring
Keeping Watch
I watch the sun sink beyond the birch and maple, grateful for lingering light on these almost-spring days. Soon the bare branches will bud and green, crowding the sunsets over the lake. But tonight, in the cool and quiet, I keep watch. I think of other sunsets, in other places. Of ribbons of colors over … Continue reading Keeping Watch
A View of the Lake 