Making a difference
My 17-year old daughter leans on the open newspaper on the kitchen counter. (Yes, as a former newspaper reporter, I can't quite give up daily delivery of the Chicago Tribune). I love that she reads [...]
Love You More
My friend and fellow Redbud Writer Jennifer Grant has a wonderful new memoir, "Love You More: The Divine Surprise of Adopting My Daughter" that you simply must read, if you are a parent or even [...]
Mindful multi-tasking??
In order to attempt to make a living as a writer, you have to be good at juggling. You have to work on more than one project at a time. I remember reading (it may [...]
Loving mercy
If someone wrongs you, the Bible clearly tells us: show mercy to them. Last week, during mid-week worship, we prayed the Lord's Prayer. Even though we used the version that says "forgive us our debts.." [...]
Saturday joys
Despite the rain, the Palatine Farmer’s Market is fairly busy this morning. In early summer, the offerings are sometimes slim, but this morning in late July, each table (carefully tented with makeshift tarps) is piled [...]
Self-discovery through service
When my son Aaron had to write an essay in school this year about a difficult experience in his life, he chose to write about having to go to a Christian summer camp for a [...]
Book give-away winners
Three lucky blog readers have won a free copy of Deeper into the Word ! they all participated by simply answering the question, what gets in the way of reading your bible? Like many of [...]
What gets in the way?
Spoiler alert: Giving away free books. Leave a comment to enter the drawing! I grew up in a church that taught me to love God’s word. That was the up side. The down side was [...]
Living a missional life
I haven't posted for a few days because I've been enjoying having my daughter back home. She's quite jet-lagged and experiencing a bit of what I call "culture dissonance," but home. She had a marvelous [...]
What are you giving up, and what are you taking up?
So often we reduce the season of Lent, if we acknowledge it at all, to giving up some indulgence. But this "spiritual spring" is also a season of "taking up." We take up our cross, [...]