Tomorrow begins my favorite season. There is jittery anticipation. Like the first basketball practice or class with an esteemed professor. Will I make the cut? Can I keep up? With the running, the writing, the standards that encourage us to rise above what we thought possible. Each Lent holds, for me, a new challenge. An
Read MoreIt is strange to live so long in a town with no river. Absent, I forget. Though Bull River defined my Montana childhood wanderings. Walking down the middle of the wooden one-lane bridge to and from the bus stop. Playing by the edge all summer long. Trout fishing and frog catching. The log church was
Read MoreMaybe money’s on my mind. It is tax time, after all. Surveying income and expenses from 2019. Sussing out solar panel possibilities. Investment or debt? Current actions are a down payment on the future. Where do we put our money, our time, our hope? When I read Isaiah 58, I hear promises and affirmation. Increasing our
Read MoreIt is easy to criticize. Authority. Administrators. Flawed systems. There is so much that is broken. Including us. Also ways to improve. Or get stuck. Even on a balmy February morning. No ice. No snow. No school. Well, not for the kids at Central HS who knew. Whose parents watch local news(!) When I saw
Read MoreAre you the person making an exuberant fool of yourself? Or are you the family trying to rein in the crazy? Mardi Gras has been in full swing since Twelfth Night, with parties increasing until Fat Tuesday. Oh, to be in New Orleans instead of gray Illinois. King David was a dancing fool. Celebrating with
Read MoreMake the “right” choice. We want decisions vindicated by their outcome. Demonstrating good judgment. Those we have selected, and invested in, to be successful. Choosing well. And we occasionally think that we can exert influence to steer people in the right direction. Poor Samuel. He had similar struggles. As high priest, he really wanted people
Read MoreLunch with the pastor of Grace Community; bringing our worship leaders together to share stories. Meeting with the pastor of Restoration Urban Ministries to plan our next connection points. Tea with a leader from Quest United Methodist to brainstorm for Good Friday Streetfest. When I read Brian McLaren’s challenge of collaboration, it resonated. Is this
Read MoreI got nothin’. In a good way, I think. Silence. Waking up with a quiet mind. Unburdened and empty. Sleep has done its work. Resolved, temporarily, the conundrums of the previous day. But what will I write? What words do I have to share? When the disciples noticed that people were hungry, their answer was
Read MoreSo much for sleeping. My thoughts flit disturbingly among heavy feelings of fault. Actions and words recent and far past that I cannot change or take back. Stuck. Darkness within and without. No sense waiting for another alarm. Get up and go seek. Light one candle for the strength that we needTo never become our
Read MoreBecause of our God’s deep compassion,the dawn from heaven will break upon us,to give light to those who are sitting in darknessand in the shadow of death,to guide us on the path of peace.” Luke 1:78-79 (CEB) May we experience God’s deep compassion, witness and walk in the light, and be guided on the path of peace.
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