Memory Upgrade: Foreheads, Hands and Doorposts
Please tell me I’m not alone. It happens to me at least daily:
I might be standing in the kitchen when I realize I need to close the window in my child’s room before the morning air wafting through the house gets too hot. Making my way around the corner, I climb the stairs. I reach the top and when I find myself at the end of the hallway, I cannot – for the life of me – remember why I’m there. The sheer number of purposeless trips I make upstairs each day could almost justify eating an entire bag of Peanut Butter M&M’s. Almost. Read More
To Regret or Not To Regret?
It’s gotten under my skin, this quote. Yes, there are positive ways to mean/understand it, but I think it’s too easily skewed.
Never regret anything because at one point in your life it was exactly what you wanted.
(I don’t even know to whom to attribute the quote, so I extend my apologies for not noting it. Whomever you are, I wish I could hear the way you intended it because I think I beg to differ with you. Respectfully, of course.)
My deepest regrets in life are over the very times I did exactly what I wanted instead of what was wise. Read More
Social Justice: Craze or Creed?
Having a social justice platform is downright ubiquitous these days. Blogs, talks and conferences on the array of justice topics abound in religious and secular circles alike.
But is it just a craze that will follow Silly Bandz and Beanie Babies into oblivion?
I certainly hope not.
After spending the last few months studying the book of James, and attending the Justice Conference in February, I have a fairly strong opinion on this topic. Read More
School Bus Redemption: Allergies, Bullies and Opportunities
Does God really work all things together for our good? Even the paltry stuff of school bus drama?
He doesn’t always let us see how He’s doing so, but His Word says He will, indeed, redeem all of life’s events for our good and His glory (Romans 8:28). I revel in it when He gives me a small glimpse of this kind of redemption.
My son suffers from a list of food allergies so long even an Iron Chef would get his spatula in a twist to cook for him. Read More
Debit Cards, Silence and Hasty Vows
It was strangely silent. The kids made scarcely a noise as we drove home. They knew I was troubled by not being able to find my debit card. I was distracted by the thoughts of potential fraudulent use.
The moment the car ignition was off, my daughter sprang to the front seat to hand me a note. Words scrawled on the page explained both the hush and the tears running down her face.
“I told God I wouldn’t talk until you found your card or got a new one … I was trying to show Him my faith in Him … What if I can’t do it? … What have I done? … I’m scared.”
Cardboard, Books and Fine China: Hoarding and Blessing
This month marks four years since we moved into our home after relocating from 
Boulder. Yet my garage is still outlined with many of the same boxes that were deposited there on moving day.
Every few months, I muster my efforts and resolve anew to unpack the belongings they contain. I ‘assess the situation’ and ‘plan my attack’ but ultimately make progress no more significant than swapping one box’s position along the periphery for another. Many of our books are entombed in cardboard, as are the china place settings from our wedding all those years ago.
My Bible study this week zeroed in on the idea of wealth. And, more importantly, the handling of it.
Your gold and silver are corroded. Their corrosion will testify against you and eat your flesh like fire. You have hoarded wealth in the last days.
— James 5:3 NIV
Being Boaz: Our Role as the Kinsman-Redeemer
In the book of Ruth, we meet Boaz, a man who heeded God’s instruction to the Israelites 
to not glean to the edges of their fields. Through his faithfulness, Ruth, a destitute young widow and a foreigner, was able to glean food for herself and her mother-in-law from his crops. When he learned of her vulnerability, Boaz sought to protect Ruth as she worked in the fields (Ruth 2:9,22). Perhaps he knew too well how easily women could be taken advantage of. After all, his mother, Rahab, was the harlot of Jericho who helped the men of Israel escape when pursued by their enemies (Joshua 2).
Perfect Friends
Do you have a perfect friend?
Perhaps you readily answered that with a ‘no’ because you’re keenly aware of their flaws, or just recognize that we’re all imperfect. Or perhaps you’re inventorying the list of people in your life that have the appearance of perfection in their ability to manage many tasks, maintain a trim, athletic figure, and exude the social graces… continuously, of course.
This week, in particular, I was blessed by several friends. They listened intently to my pain, eager to share the burden. They cast no judgement, yet willingly spoke truth, because they love me. They will continue to pray for, and with, me. My time with them leaves me feeling affirmed and spurred on to run the race marked out for me (Hebrews 12:1). Afterwards, I specifically thanked God, recognizing them each as a gift in my life. Read More
Forerunner
I received a comment on last week’s blog post Heaven’s Anchor via email that was too good to not share with you all – as a post all of it’s own. You’ll recall the verse:
We have this as a sure and steadfast anchor of the soul, a hope that enters into the inner place behind the curtain, where Jesus has gone as a forerunner on our behalf, having become a high priest forever after the order of Melchizedek.
— Hebrews 6:19, 20 ESV
The commenter said: Read More
Heaven’s Anchor
Hope. There’s a word we throw around quite easily, whether it’s a casual ‘fingers crossed’ for a specific birthday gift, or the earnest belief of triumph despite tragedy. In my musing meanderings this week, I decided I needed to know what it really meant.
As I reflected on these four heart-buoying letters, my initial thoughts were that it simply conveyed confidence about future expectations. My mind’s eye conjured images skyward, ethereal and misty. When I went to the scriptures, however, I found a different picture in Hebrews: Read More
