Category: Blog
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Our Faith is Not ‘Still’
When I walk through my neighborhood, I encounter the beautiful and melodic sounds of many windchimes. Each one is unique in design, and in the breeze, each one moves to create the sound it was specifically made for. Now that I know where the windchimes are, I see them regularly.…
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The Love of Advent (and Christmas)
The Love we recognize and receive this week doesn’t just complete our Advent preparation; it encompasses our journey. The unwavering and faithful love of God that binds our hope, peace, and joy now envelops us and invites us to renewal. ‘God so loved the world….’ (John 3:16). He still ‘so…
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The Joy of Advent
We reflected on joy about a month ago, and here we are again. It’s worth revisiting! As we ponder joy through the lens of Advent this week, we know it is something very special. So special that we are given the bold signs of the rose Advent wreath candle and…
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The Peace of Advent
While preparing for today’s entry, I had ‘peace’ on my mind, and the sight of the unusual stillness of this squirrel in the tree caught my eye. Normally, the squirrels in our yards are hurried in multiple directions, so I noticed this one remaining in place while very strong winds…
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The Hope of Advent
Now that we have stepped into the spiritual journey of Advent, we are invited to fully encounter the theme or meditation of the first week – hope. We already look toward several things in our lives with hope. There is a superficial (perhaps even fun) hope of ‘I hope my…
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All Things Hold Together
I see the beginning of Advent this Sunday to be kind of a ‘start’ button, a renewed beginning to a time of welcome, awareness, and surrender. A simple but telling line in last weekend’s second reading reminds us that the Lord is our connection to all three of these: “…in…
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Not Always a Straight Line
Though I did well enough in my math classes, math was not my favorite subject. Yet when I look up directions to a new location, one geometry ‘rule’ usually comes to mind: The shortest distance between two points is a straight line. Makes perfect sense. I thought of it again…
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Finding Joy Along the Way
On my walk today, I saw quite a few houses with Halloween decorations still up which wasn’t really a surprise. I’m sure they’ll come down pretty soon. However, as I rounded a corner, I was struck at seeing a new house decoration (that wasn’t there yesterday). I was moved not…
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November’s Graces
November arrives, and we begin thinking about upcoming holidays, shopping lists, travel plans, wrapping paper, greeting cards, etc. There’s nothing wrong with any of that. It’s helpful to get a start on these details if we haven’t already. However, there is a richness in the month of November that invites…
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“There is Need of Only One Thing”
A few nights ago, I tried to watch shows on three different TV channels at the same time. I don’t have the ability to record programs, so that wasn’t an option. I don’t have a split screen feature, so that wasn’t possible either. The best I could do was flip…
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“Be Constant in Prayer”
Several years ago, I had a friend who often wore a round pink button on her coat that read “PUSH” (pray until something happens). I appreciated her testimony of faith, and it was a nice, simple reminder to not give up on prayer. Our call to be persistent in prayer,…
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It’s Simple – God Loves You
I try to be good about reading various articles, reflections, and books on God, prayer, and spirituality. I am especially enriched when others share their faith experiences, and I welcome the helpful insights, encouraging perspectives, and useful prayer methods that help strengthen my faith and bring comfort. There are occasions…
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The Gift of Presence
I’ve been picking up on a theme. Just over a week ago, I read an article related to a specific business, and it referred to the power of presence that professionals in that industry offer their clients. Near the same time, I listened to a podcast in which the idea…
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Almost There
On the weekends, kids at the pool watch the clock closely, eagerly waiting for ‘adult swim’ to officially be over. Last weekend, while he was waiting, one little boy went to the large ruler by the stairs that lead to the big, covered, winding slide to see if he was…
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Our Refuge
I wasn’t surprised to wake up to the sound of rain falling steadily because a very high chance of rain was predicted. After several recent rains skipped our area, I welcomed the much-needed rain and was confident this forecast would finally be accurate. As I looked at the backyard through…
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True Peace and Tranquility
I have a small candle which I light occasionally during times of prayer and reflection. The aroma is pleasant and mild, and on the outside of the candle are the words ‘peace and tranquility.’ Though the candle helps create a quiet, prayerful environment and encourages me to focus my thoughts,…
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Who We Are
I was blessed to have a good and fulfilling conversation with a friend this week about faith, where God is working in our lives, and other related topics. In our discussion, I admitted that my immediate thought in response to seeing, reading, or hearing something troubling, especially when it involves…
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Prayers Worth Sharing
I have a few prayer ‘phrases’ or short prayers that I recite especially in moments when I don’t know where to start or when I don’t specifically know what to pray for. I just know that I desire to simply be with God and seek His peace, and these help…
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Whose Voice Do We Hear?
We’ve all probably gone through those periods of time when we feel as if everything is going wrong. Even when we absolutely know many things are going ‘right.’ It just tends to add up all at once, so we can easily, and naturally, feel sad, weak, tired, angry, frustrated, alone,…
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Time to Just ‘Be’
For a little change of scenery to do some reflecting and praying at home, I spent some time in a room I don’t often go into. I settled in to try to organize (or at least calm) my thoughts and ended up focusing on a wall decoration directly across from…
Journeying to Grace 