Good morning... Yesterday's student Sunday at Northside Church was quite special. Kids I have seen grow up over the years played major roles in all three services. Audrey DeShelter shared the pastoral prayer, which felt beautifully reciprocal. Ongoing prayer support is one of the best gifts, given and received, when we are deeply connected to our church family. [...]
Good morning... Her blog post was sobering, surrendering, soul-touching. Sifting through a pile of powerful words, she unleashed life-giving song lyrics, "Don't waste today being scared of tomorrow." ****** Excerpt from Elizabeth's PostHope blog post, February 1, 2024 Too much heaviness. Too much weight. Too much pain. Too much fear. Too much wondering. Too much waiting. Too much [...]
Good morning... I met a humble, hopeful prayer. ****** P R AY E R by Grahame Davies Spirit, use me today, not in some miracle that would make others marvel and would make me proud. Not in the word of wisdom that would stay in the mind and make me always remembered. Not in the heroic act that [...]
Good morning... I slowly walked in silence on a damp, dreary day. Mysteriously mirroring the wider world, everything around felt muddy, muted, mournful. As I continued my silent stroll, I noticed a unique, yellow tree. Amid the gray decay, it felt like my burning bush. Much like Moses, [...]
Good morning... "For today, and all days needed," she texted me this poem. ****** LET YOURSELF REST If you’re exhausted, rest. If you don’t feel like starting a new project, don’t. If you don’t feel the urge to make something new, just rest in the beauty of the old, the familiar, the known. If you don’t feel like [...]
Good morning... "Looking forward to what this new year holds," I wrote to end my text. "I am as well..." she replied from California. "Full moon tonight out here and clear skies with loads of stars. Easy to be in awe of the power of the Spirit and God's plan with this sky." "We forget sometimes," she added. [...]
Good morning... This week in our therapeutic community group at PAWkids, we were encouraged to pick a handful of cards, cards that somehow share our story. The five cards above are the cards I felt drawn to choose, arranging them just so. Take a moment. Really look. Now let's feel our way forward, down and out. Pondering the [...]
Good morning... When I wake around 1:00 am, I notice stripes of light resting on our bathroom floor and tub. With natural light silently breaking through the shutters of a nearby window, I think to myself, "The moon must be filling up with light." Our little dog Gracie takes me out often in the middle of the night [...]
Good morning... Up in the middle of the night, I prepare to facilitate a four-week study of Ron Greer's new book, The Quiet House. Reading slowly, I savor Ron's first six reflections on the loss of a spouse. Real. Gentle. Nurturing and authentic. Enjoying each word, I sense God's presence. I have often said, "If God had a [...]
Good morning... In these early morning hours, I pull out the bulletin from Scott's celebration service. Out fall the eight small pages of notes I took during the zesty tribute. Reading through my scribblings again, the unique flavor of Scott's vibrant life comes back in full force. Scott's two brothers and a handful of friends spoke alongside our [...]
