Good morning... As I sat in the airport waiting to fly to Ohio for my dad's 88th birthday weekend, I got a text from a long time Northside Church member. She was on her way to pick up her husband from the hospital after his recovery from a scary emergency surgery. Airport. Hospital. Our interaction reminded me of [...]
Good morning... Today, my dad turns 88 years old. From Atlanta, Georgia to Olmsted Falls, Ohio, I send my early morning "Happy Birthday" wish to the man who most regularly reads our daily blog. My dad also loves to read newspaper articles, especially ones written by Terry Pluto, columnist for the local paper, the Cleveland Plain Dealer. This [...]
Good morning... "I hate to be the one to tell you, but she really doesn't like you, Sue," one friend said to me about a person I actually considered an important friend. "She's talking badly about you," another woman said at a different time and place. Of all of the mixed emotions I have wrestled with this Lenten [...]
Good morning... One morning meditation draws us into intimacy with God. When we feel overwhelmed by life, it is time to deeply trust. ****** A Simple Act Of Trust by Henri Nouwen O Lord, all you ask of me is a simple “yes,” a simple act of trust, so that your choices for me can bear fruit in [...]
Happy St. Patrick's Day... Did you know what the three leaves of the shamrock symbolize? Faith. Hope. Love. I learned this truth at PAWkids during our art project last Monday. Using a large array of art supplies, I saw these three God-given qualities come to life. Art stirs up [...]
Good morning... If we are to go where we are destined to go, we need to harness the power of the One and Only dependable stream of wind. There are other competing winds wreaking havoc in our world. In recent days, I have pondered this wise advice: "Keep your sail out of that wind." I think of the [...]
Good morning... This week many of us went to one or both of the services celebrating the lives of two faithful men from our Atlanta community. On Thursday morning at Northside Church, we honored the life of Jim Caswell, husband of Robbie. "Jim lived a full and blessed life," reads his obituary. "He was a grateful man that [...]
Good morning... After our recent post, one dear friend responded, "I think it took retirement for me to Pause. Breathe and Expand!" I thought to myself, "Choosing to retire is so different than hearing the harsh words, 'You're fired.'" I think of all the hard workers who have lost their jobs this month, their work-lives reduced to a [...]
Good morning... On Saturday at noon, two young men from our community were laid to final rest, following two touching memorial services in two different parts of town. Josh Patrick lived twenty-three vibrant years on this earth, and Christopher Rascoe was twenty-four years old when he took his final breath. Our youngest son is twenty-three, soon turning twenty-four, so [...]
Good morning... Last week in our post The Setting Of A Life, I wrote about being with my friend, Martha, as her husband was in the process of dying. That visit to his memory care unit happened on a Monday afternoon. A week later, this past Monday, two of us close friends shared dinner with Martha and thoroughly [...]
