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
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
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
I love Psalm 107. It’s just so…comforting, I guess. It starts with the command to express thanks to God for His enduring faithfulness. What comes next are four scenarios of people in trouble: –trouble because of what God is doing to bring them out of exile, –trouble because their rebellion Read more
This day has been a pain in the back. Literally. I have been sitting with a sock of heated beans against my lower back all morning. I don’t know what I did to it; I just know it hurts to bend, reach, stretch and, worst of all, walk! Actually, there 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 brethren. –I John 3:16 It was a bright, chilly morning near the base of Cat Peaks in Usery Park. Fifteen or so of us had made our Read more
Ancient covenants were more like peace treaties, but between ruler and subjects. The sovereign promised protection from enemies and provision of shelter and sustenance. The burden for these two things rested on the one ruling. The subjects were responsible for loyalty and obedience. They were not to commit treason, or Read more
O holy Child of Bethlehem, Descend to us, we pray; Cast out our sin and enter in, Be born in us today. Jesus came to show us the Father. Everything true about Jesus is true about the Father. To have Jesus born in us…means we are never far from His Read more
Here am I, the servant of the Lord; let it be with me according to your word. –Luke 1:38 With only a few days till Christmas, my schedule feels even more full than normal. Regular household work competes with parties and decorating, and the rivalry generates chaos. Just after I Read more