Protective parenting
The events in Connecticut (and also Oregon) this week have left me stunned. Not only by the intial acts of violence, but by the fierce debates over gun laws etc. on blogs and social media. [...]
Review of Deeply Loved
One of my favorite blogs to read is my friend Tim Fall's. Because Tim is not just writing, he's engaging in community. Today, he's reviewed Deeply Loved. Click on over and visit--and be sure to [...]
Incarnation
One of the best ways to imitate Christ is to do what he did at that first Christmas: simply show up. The Word became flesh, and dwelt among us. Or as Eugene Peterson's apt metaphor [...]
A courageous Advent
The word Advent means "coming." In these busy weeks preceding Christmas, I want to focus not just on buying gifts, but on receiving the gift that has come my way: God's grace, made visible in [...]
Taking a breath before Advent
This year's shopping season may have started before the turkey leftovers fully cooled, but we have almost a week before Advent officially begins this Sunday. Rather than get caught up in the frenzy, take a [...]
Renovations
It is time to redecorate. To revise, edit, streamline. We're planning some changes--nothing major, don't worry--here on my website. One question to help me as I renovate: when you think of this blog, do you [...]
Telling the voice of fear to shut up
Last week, on Free Book Friday, I asked some questions: "What barriers get in the way of knowing you’re deeply loved? What keeps you from experiencing the love of Jesus in a personal and profound [...]
What brings you joy?
At the end of a long week, I have had enough of words on screens, of words with child and spouse, trying to understand and be understood. I'm ready for fewer words. Some creatives turn [...]
Will your holidays be holy days?
It's November. The holidays are coming we tell each other, sometimes with a wild, fearful look in our eyes. But think about that word—holidays. Holy days. Its etymology is far removed from its current stress-inducing [...]
Let the Word minister to you
As the early morning light filters through the trees in my back yard, the morning glories along the deck railing lift their faces. I sit, open Bible and journal before me. The birds twitter a [...]