John reports (John 13) “the time had come” for Jesus to go to the Father. In this case it was a period of about 50 days. For the last three years Jesus had loved His own…His own disciples, the Twelve; His own people, Israel; His own sheep, any who heard Read more
I woke this morning with unanticipated pain. In a fallen world like ours, pain is to be expected: It came with the first act of disobedience. It is a gift: It warns us that something is amiss. It is an opportunity: It invites us to explore our hearts. My first Read more
So…there is every day and everyday. There is day-after-day and thoughtless routine… autopilot, if you will. One of my “every day” things is time in the Scriptures. Sometimes that time is an unengaged habit. Sometimes it is a rock-my-world event! Even remembering the horrific suffering and brutal death of Jesus Read more
I was journaling yesterday, thanking God for His mercies, new and old… New mercies: electricity, sunrise, oranges and lemons waiting to be processed and preserved, Bonus Teen’s joy in helping and interest in learning, hugs and prayers with the Hub, strong machines to do laundry and dishes, abundant food and Read more
The reduced number of social interactions lately has provided me with some extra time to spend sprucing up the yard and garden, unearthing some buried paving stones along with Bermuda grass stems and rhizomes. This has netted some interesting bird-watching opportunities. From the window over the desk in our “library,” Read more
We have been blessed with a house on a good-sized lot, and since the first year we lived here, I have had a vegetable garden and some fruit-bearing plants. Fruitful? Indeed! Beautiful? Hmmm…maybe not so much. For a while. I have been asking God to give me what I needed Read more
Apart from our standing with God through Jesus Christ, our future is always uncertain. These days that’s a little more apparent than usual. The financial world, governments, corporations, neighborhoods are all shaking in the face of an adversary too tiny to be seen with even a powerful microscope! Fear has Read more
By this we know love, that he laid down his life for us, and we ought to lay down our lives for the brothers. 1 John 3:16 Digging into this verse (mine for 2020), I uncovered a small idea that I am beginning to explore: the Greek word translated life is Read more
Caution tape surrounds my house today, and there are the sounds of drills, hammers and work boots on my roof. After what seems like too long a time, our solar panels are undergoing the process of restoration. For the last few years, they have faithfully converted our abundant sunshine into Read more
Picking up where we left off…after some more-or-less quiet time with Jesus, an everyday event in this disciple’s life is meal planning. What in the world does meal planning have to do with following Jesus?! At the end of this “following” is a great feast! The Marriage Supper of the Read more