Good morning... This image of a homeless person resting on a bench lives in the foyer of the Ignatius House Retreat Center. The humble figure draws my attention every time I enter the sacred space. Arriving on the gorgeous grounds yesterday around 5:30 pm, I found that the doors were locked to the library where I usually place [...]
Good morning... Eugene Peterson spent zillions of hours translating the entire Bible into a relatable language for us common people. The Message translation is an inviting gift to our world, a gift birthed by Peterson's long obedience in the same direction. Leif Peterson eulogizing his late father, Eugene, at the First Presbyterian Church in Kalispell, Montana on November [...]
Good morning... Yesterday afternoon, we happily gathered for our first monthly class of this new semester. Amidst our great discussion, we read aloud from page 24 in A Long Obedience in the Same Direction by Eugene Peterson. "...one motif occurs again and again," wrote Holocaust survivor Elie Wiesel. "A traveler loses his way in the forest; it it [...]
Good morning... At Northside Church, our Faithful Fitness class began a new semester on Wednesday morning at 9:30 am. One gift that blessed our time together was cooling down to Christy Nockel's song entitled Home. The song mirrors the truth of Psalm 23:6 (GNT). I know that your goodness and love will be with me all my life; [...]
Good morning... Most of us start the day with preconceived plans. More likely than not, our plans will be interrupted. The quote above, sent by a friend last week, helps to shift our focus from, "Why, God, why?" to "Who?" and to "What?" In the Plan B moments we meet today, might we stop and wonder and learn, [...]
Good morning... As we notice ourselves waking up to this day, we dwell with God right where we are. I have been introduced to a new app called Dwell, a daily devotion which deepens our focus on God ...in whom we live and move and have our being (Acts 17:28a, NIV). In class yesterday, we began by listened [...]
Good morning... Yesterday we gathered for our first Wednesday afternoon class of the semester to study Waking Up to This Day: Seeing the Beauty Right before Us by Paula D'Arcy. New faces joined our crowd of old friends, and the Holy Spirit bonded us naturally. To introduce ourselves, we shared one thing we noticed about the cover of [...]
Good morning... When our new Associate Pastor, Rev. Dana Ezell, spoke to our Morning Mission Circle last Tuesday, she talked about two ordinary women who followed the call of God and changed the course of history. She shared with us this fascinating story from Exodus 1:15-20 (CEB). The king of Egypt spoke to two Hebrew midwives named Shiphrah [...]
Good morning... As my fall schedule began to fill in, a friend sent me this quote: "You are exactly where you are meant to be." What a empowering word of encouragement. Living into my twentieth year at Northside Church, I love the cyclical nature of our ministry to women. Every year, the summer season ends and a new [...]
Good morning... On Saturday, I received a text from my dad in Ohio: "I received a message from Ingar (Margit's son). He said that Margit passed away this morning. She passed peacefully surrounded by family." She passed away at her home in Norway, pictured above in April of 2020. Margit spent a year with our family as a [...]
