Good morning... This week I received a powerful poem from a forever friend who has taught me so much about grieving well and tenderly embracing every ounce of life. "A Center" by Ha Jin You must hold your quiet center, where you do what only you can do. If others call you a maniac or a fool, just [...]
Good morning... Years ago I learned of a Quaker concept called "bundle." Over the years, God has enhanced my small seed of understanding. The main gist is that we are all born into this world wired for a unique "bundle" of people, people we are designed to spiritually influence and to be influenced by over our lifetime. Our [...]
Good morning... "Dear Friend," she wrote after yesterday's post My Five Year Headache. "About the time you wrote to me, I was stirring and ready to slip downstairs for coffee and a chapter or two from my current book Lighthousekeeping. I made coffee and read these words: Tell me a story . . . What story, child? One [...]
Good morning... Rain whispers, "Stay home. Keep warm. Relax inside." Yet as I am home, I think of the vulnerable. As I keep warm, I pray for those who are cold. As I relax inside, I hold in my heart those tossed and torn up by stormy unrest. As rain [...]
Good morning... As I was searching for a simple way to bring to life the first three chapters of Genesis, I ran into this really cool rendition of two artists' expression of Genesis 3. God also drew me to Luke 7:40-47 in the Message translation to balance our bad debt with God's abundant goodness. Up from our common [...]
Good morning... Last night as we watched the Super Bowl with our small group from church, we enjoyed the always entertaining commercials. One clever commercial involved a hilarious Jason Alexander hoodie. Another "Let's grab a beer" commercial reminded us that it has never been about the beer, it's about being together. With the return of Wayne's World, Wayne, [...]
Good morning... "I enjoyed this week’s materials and hearing your story," wrote the Creative Director who had just finished programming Week Six our Gift from the Sea study. "I admire your courage and vulnerability not just with God, but with your audience in sharing that story. It feels like a heavy one, but beautiful in its faithful ending." [...]
Good morning... "Sue - I’m having the most amazing ah-ha moments right now," she wrote. "I had to share this with you, both, because it relates to your recent stories of friendships dying & because I’m so grateful God is walking beside me so closely, leading me to new understanding & transformation - some truths I think I’ve been [...]
Good morning... Soon after my longtime friend cut our ties, my husband and I went to a wedding in Virginia. The morning after we arrived, I woke and went on a walk down an unfamiliar path. When the road forked, I noticed a less traveled path. Robert Frost's poem came to mind: "Two roads diverged in a wood, [...]
Good morning... This week, a friend sent me an inspiring music video. Sense with me the voice of God expanding out in all directions this sacred Sabbath morn. What we heard we have also seen. We have seen it in the city of the Lord who rules over all. We have seen it in the city of our [...]
