Good morning... Yesterday the annual email came in, announcing the beginning of Northside Church's Advent devotional. Exquisitely written and creatively shared, the talent of Dr. James Johnson and his new wife, Elisabeth Shabbi Johnson, are on full display. I invite you to come along on the daily journey with us, beginning with yesterday's introductory email. ****** Introduction to [...]
Good morning... After creating Martha's Happy Painting, my artist friend, Gina, talked about the process of transforming the unfinished painting I had purchase at a flea market. "Sue, the original looked like the painter was struggling with body form, layout and color," Gina wrote. "The colors were cold and it had no depth. I did not like the [...]
Good morning... I've told you about Martha Kimbel, our friend who had taught beloved fitnesses classes at Northside Church for twenty-five years. Eight years ago her husband's Alzheimer's worsened and she needed to stay home as his full time caregiver. Two years ago, her husband, Chris, went to heaven. Martha feared her dancing days were over, but, in [...]
Good morning... Last Monday night, we had dinner with our small group, a group we've been meeting with regularly for several years now. Each time we've gathered, we've shared a meal and talked about faith and kids, weddings and grandkids, aging parents and life's highs and lows. One man asked, "Throughout your lifetime, what life phase has been [...]
Good morning... I had not talked to my friend from Minnesota since the beginning of the summer, so we had a lot of catching up to do. As we shared a phone call this week, I got teary as I told her about putting our dog, Tate, to sleep in June. Tears surprisingly still flowed as I heard [...]
Good morning... One of my favorite hours in the week holds space for our therapeutic community group to gather around the sacred table at PAWkids. Unique adults - small and tall, young and old, black and white, male and female - we are guided through creative activities which help us to express the wide range of emotions washing [...]
Good morning... Yesterday after blogging about Our New Selves matching the metamorphosis of a butterfly, I received a text from a loyal reader from South Carolina, a faithful woman I have never met. "Good morning, Sue," she wrote. "I'm sending you part of the Glorify devotional from today, as the Holy Spirit is using the butterfly transformation to [...]
Good morning... Going through old boxes of old stuff in our basement, I came across this old card. I chuckle every time I look at the butterfly driving a car with a caterpillar on her driver's license. She sheepishly tells the officer, who has pulled her over, "That's an old photo." This old card came to me when [...]
Good morning... As thirty of us gathered at Mend Coffee last Tuesday morning to meet with author Katherine Wolf, she told us about the massive brain stem stroke that nearly ended her life at age twenty-six. As Katherine was fielding questions about her book Hope Heals, one woman said, "When you were unable to speak for a long [...]
Good morning... Six weeks ago the Spirit of God moved, undeniably. It happened after an energizing walk and talk through the neighborhood of my longtime friend, Martha Kimbel. She and I were sitting at her kitchen island drinking water after our walk when, out of the blue, I felt nudged to ask, "Martha, would you ever consider coming [...]
