This week Dave and I are spending some quality time in Florida with our oldest daughter and her children. Dave works during the day while Emily and I hang with the girls. It’s been great! Monday we decided to go to the beach late in the afternoon so Dave could go along. Arriving at the …
Somewhere along the way I learned, as a parent, it was easy for me to over promise and under deliver. I made commitments I couldn’t keep. Likely, this has as much to do with the way I am put together as anything. I hate to disappoint anyone so I am eager to please. I want …
Peace. Is peace the absence of conflict? Or is it, perhaps, something more substantive than that? I am sure I am not the only one who has gone to some sort of event — for many it is a family gathering — under the guise of peace. The goal is to eliminate arguments, fist fights …
Asleep at the wheel. An idiomatic statement meaning not alert or attentive. To be asleep at the wheel isn’t a statement of one actually sleeping but rather being in a state of unawares. This week, as I listened to a podcast, I had a sense that it is possible to devote time and energy to …
Jesus often withdrew by himself to solitary places to pray. He is an example to follow as I make my way through the chaos of life, asking myself, “Am I willing to depart from ordinary life to seek direction in prayer?” Yesterday I noted that before Jesus began his public ministry, he spent 40 days …
What kills trust? Perhaps there are many things but the one that came to mind today is this —- rehearsing the negative. As one blogger put it – meditating on the mess. Recently, Dave and I spent a few weeks apart. He was in Florida for one week but then returned to Indiana alone while …
4Some wandered in the wilderness, lost and homeless. 5Hungry and thirsty, they nearly died. 6“Lord, help!” they cried in their trouble, and he rescued them from their distress. 7He led them straight to safety, to a city where they could live. 8Let them praise the Lord for his great love and for the wonderful things he has …
Friday I sent a message to my five most trusted friends that said: “I am not okay. Depression is knocking at the door, standing on the porch waiting for me to invite it in. I spend time with Jesus, I rehearse truth. But this is lonely and I need someone to know. I need to …
Yesterday our sermon was the second in a series entitled, “Talking Points.” The series addresses the difficult subject of politics and religion. Really! Doesn’t every family have a few topics they quietly agree to not talk about and the top two have to be religion and politics, right?! Well, Senior Pastor Jay Shetler is bursting …
Today I am going to Montana to visit my mom. As I observe people and situations, I will listen for what the Holy Spirit wants to teach me along the way and share them as my Montana musings. Thanks for joining me on this adventure! My travel day began with more adventure than I intended. …