Seeking to be CONTENT in all things, JOYFUL in HOPE, PATIENT in affliction.
We recently went on our first camping trip since COVID hit. We had forgotten how to do almost everything. Where does this tent pole go? What did we once pack for dinner? How much ice goes in the ice chest? Thank goodness I keep lists! Once we got there and figured out which end was up, however, the days were filled with small moments brimming with grace. Conversations with longtime friends who we have seen infrequently since they …
Blessed is the one who finds wisdom, and the one who gets understanding, for the gain from her is better than gain from silver and her profit better than gold. Proverbs 3:13-14 My ancestors owned slaves. It is an uncomfortable truth that has nothing to do with my lived experience. Yet it is my heritage, unknown to me for most of my life. I want to believe these forebearers were kind masters. That they treated their few slaves as workers rather than property. Even so, there is no getting around the fact that they were the masters. These God-fearing Christians somehow thought it was ok, even necessary, to own other people. When they died, they included these enslaved people …
Even if you didn’t comprehend the language, the anger was unmistakable. The man being interviewed had just lost his home, his neighborhood to Russian bombs. His face was contorted with pain and the desire for justice. The faces that have filled newscasts and news pages in recent weeks are all you need to see. Their expressions tell the story of Ukraine at war. Anger and grief are well represented. Maybe more prevalent, however, are blank expressions. They may signify confusion or …
Love that affirms is much more than hearts and flowers.
We have a yam that never made it onto a holiday table, but it has done much to nourish me. And it has done so without extra calories!The forgotten yam was in my pantry when I noticed it had begun to sprout. Normally, a sprouting tuber would go directly into the compost bin. This one was leafing out nicely, though, and I remembered how pretty yam vines can be. So I placed it on my windowsill, thinking that at some point I would plant it. It has been there ever since.It continues growing without any help from me. In its own …
Sara K. Schwittek/Reuters The surreal nature and unfolding horror of 9/11 is unforgettable. But 20 years later, my most enduring memories are small vignettes from that day and the days that followed. I remember driving my girls to school as I tried to explain what had happened. I reassured them that they would be safe at school and that Daddy would be safe at work, even though I barely understood the situation myself. I remember my kindergartener asking a few days later if tourists go to jail. It took me …
Anyone who knows me, knows I love fall. I can’t wait for pumpkins, falling leaves, crisp mornings and crunchy apples, mulled cider, roasted pumpkin seeds, and the silly fun of Halloween. In the waning days of August, I made an impulse buy of a ceramic Jack-a-lantern luminary and a masked hedgehog (named Nutmeg) whose legs dangle over the edge of the mantel. I will try to restrain myself and not display these until October. It will be challenging. As I was helping our …
I got my second vaccination the other day. I underestimated how exciting that would be. It is gradually dawning on me that it will soon be safer to see people and do things. Of course, caution is still advised until more people get vaccinated and the rates of infection drop. Nonetheless, it is thrilling. Headlines speak of when we can get back to normal. But what will normal really look like after a year in …
Forget the hearts and flowers. Embrace love that affirms, encourages, strengthens this Valentine's Day.
For our boast is this, the testimony of our conscience, that we behaved in the world with simplicity and godly sincerity, not by earthly wisdom but by the grace of God... 2 Corinthians 1:12 It is a new year, and the call has gone out to simplify our lives. It seems every other email I have received lately was an article on six ways to simplify my life or 10 great products that would do the simplifying for me. Many …
SMALL MOMENTS FULL OF GRACE 