The part of the tour that my son dreaded the most had finally arrived. As the bus turned toward Mondsee from Salzburg, our guide switched on the soundtrack and challenged the intergenerational bus load of fans (and their reluctant companions) to sing along. I couldn’t help myself as, grinning from ear to ear, I joined […]
We arrived in Germany on a Monday, and by Wednesday I was getting nervous… Thursday was family-arrival-day. My daughter and I made the long hop together, arriving to meet my parents who had done their pilgrimage the week before. When my husband and son hit the tarmac running, we might have been singing ‘The Gang’s […]
Some people barrel through life in a constant state of ablaze-for-what-comes-next. Some people live very well in the moment, but when the moment is gone, so goes its power. No lesson learned. No lingering sense of the holy in what just happened. And some people put down roots – deep and extensive roots – in […]
Cajon is Spanish for box, and it’s also what I got for Christmas a few years back. Not just a box, mind you, but a box-shaped drum. The mellow accompaniment of this cleverly designed instrument is remarkably well-matched to an acoustic set with guitar and piano. Unlike the potentially overpowering presence of a drum kit […]
It’s PINK Tuesday! Last week we explored, from a Christian perspective, ways in which our faith and resources might be given as gifts to those in need. We established the importance of BOUNDARIES, we discussed the temptation to buy into GUILT, we learned that it is our RESPONSIBILITY to know how God has shaped us to […]
What’s a conscientious Christian to do in the midst of overwhelming need? When the people whose lives intersect with ours have needs that threaten to consume the time/energy/generosity of everyone around them, how can we remain true to the call of Christ (and help them) without burning out or wanting to run away? I suspect […]
Along with a dozen beautiful believers-under-construction, I am re-reading the classic ‘Celebration of Discipline‘ by Richard Foster. Clearly an oxymoron to the spiritually faint of heart, Foster makes a strong case for placing the words ‘Celebration’ and ‘Discipline’ into the same sentence. Week after week my small group of women comes together to wrestle with […]
These days, I’m thinking Jason Bourne. Jason Bourne knows what it takes to really go ‘off the grid’ and disappear. This is something I’m interested in, because I do it so poorly. I try to set aside time to study and pray, and my best efforts are sabotaged time after time. So… I watch Jason, […]
Jesus prayed for His disciples: “Holy Father! Keep them safe by the power of your name, the name you gave me, so that they may be one just as you and I are one.” John 17:11b How hard is it for people to be “one” – completely unified in heart and mind? Is Jesus praying […]
“A deaf man with a speech impediment was brought to him, and the people begged Jesus to lay his hands on the man to heal him. Jesus led him away from the crowd so they could be alone. He put his fingers into the man’s ears. Then, spitting on his own fingers, he touched the […]