High fructose corn syrup was introduced in 1970 as a solution to the rising costs of sugar cane. While reducing the production costs of soda (and many other products), it wreaked havoc on the waistlines of Americans. Obesity grew expotentially in the years following, making it the second leading preventable cause of death in America. …
“When you build a new house, you must build a railing around the edge of its flat roof. That way you will not be considered guilty of murder if someone falls from the roof.” Deuteronomy 22:8 Never have I considered entertaining someone on my roof. But then, mine is rather steep and completely unuseable as …
As the week winds down, I am challenged to ponder anew what it means to live with intimate knowledge of God’s love for me through Jesus. Not of justice, peace, equality, good, evil, morality – any of the characteristics we have become accustomed to associating with Christianity at some level. Just immersing myself in the …
I grew up on a farm bordering a river. Eighty acres of the property is a conifer woods along the river. The bank of the river is a great place to watch the sunset. One evening, a friend and I decided to go to the river and do just that. During the blue hour following …
What is it that draws me to the choreography and sychronous movement of backup dancing or drill team? Why am I enlivened by the invitation to “keep in step with the Spirit?” As I ponder that, I recognize something about myself. I don’t need to be the main atttraction. I want to be a part …
So I say, let the Holy Spirit guide your lives. Then you won’t be doing what your sinful nature craves . . . Since we live by the Spirit, let us keep in step with the Spirit. Galatians 5:16, 25 Early Sunday morning, as the night turned into day, the phrase “walk it out” came …
The last few days have been rainy. Not just a gentle rain, but storms, winds and downpours. Along with the storms came the most amazing cloud displays. And rainbows! As I watched the clouds build and billow across the sky, I was so grateful. It was absolutely beautiful. The sun was setting and the colors …
Learning to care for myself has been a difficult task. I want to avoid self-centered habits. After all, the universe does not revolve around my belly button, no matter how much I might believe the opposite. It seems there is a fine line between boundaries and self-care and self-obsessed living. How do I make the …
Years ago, I found myself involved in a boundary-centered religious setting. The premise of this type of group is boundaries keep us “in” and the bad “out.” It is possible to know who is “in” by observing external behaviors. I am the perfect candidate for this setting because I am also a recovering approval addict. …
Someday we will look back at the time spent in social distancing and isolation and it will be a distant memory. Perhaps we learned things about ourselves and others. We might have learned a new skill, took up a new hobby, read a new book, watched a great movie. Maybe we learned to spend time …