Spending three session-packed days at the Calvin Festival of Faith & Writing has left my body buzzing as though I've eaten an entire chocolate cake and washed it down with a pot of caffeinated coffee. From this sentence, how would you describe what this conference was like for me? Dull? Boring? Waste of time? Or …
Tag: Religion and Spirituality
Life at 82: K is for Kinship
Being back in Grand Rapids, MI, this week elicits several feelings of kinship--an appreciation of similar origins. Like visiting my sister-in-law, Kay, yesterday. We are the oldest and youngest of my sibling clan, and the other eight have passed away. So a special visit for sure. Then stopping at my parents' cemetery yesterday brought tears. …
Psalm 71 – a comfort for older folks
I recorded my reading of this Psalm for my church's website. My hope is that it may be a blessing to you as much as it's been to me in these uncertain times. Click below: http://www.youtube.com/watch
Sailing on the High Seas
Wash, wash, wash your hands Twenty seconds at a time Merrily, merrily, merrily, Don’t even try to mime! I’m writing this blog post from the Tasman Sea, about 9,000 miles from my home in South Dakota, USA. This sea is between New Zealand and Australia and is known to be “incredibly dangerous.” At the time …
Mental Illness Awareness Week – 2017
Take a minute this week to pray for those who are living with a mental illness. According to the National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI), one in four adults--approximately 60 million Americans--experiences a mental health disorder in a given year, so we don't have to look far. Last Sunday, I attended the 25th Annual Candlelight …
Lies, Put-downs, and Ivory Soap
I’m a preacher’s daughter. A PK. I was raised in a fishbowl with guidelines on how to behave, including a sense of right and wrong. I was not allowed to swear; I was not even allowed to say gee, gosh, or heck as they were presented as shortened versions of Jesus, God, and heaven. I …
What are you willing to suffer for? Part 3 – Final Answer
As a response to Part I and Part 2 of this series about suffering, I was comforted yesterday to see the "final answer" to our earthly suffering in the form of our Prayer of Confession written in our church bulletin: Holy God, so many times you have approached us, and we have turned away, You …
Continue reading What are you willing to suffer for? Part 3 – Final Answer
What are you willing to suffer for? Part 2
I asked this question last time based on reading Daniel Taylor’s words that he could tell what our passion was by how we answered this question. Passion is a concept that I’ve discussed often with one of my sisters since we’ve retired. In our working years, we both knew what our passion was. Teaching. We …
What are you willing to suffer for?
A scintillating question. When I read this, I really had to think. I’m gearing up to attend the Calvin College Faith & Writing Festival in April, and I like to read some of the authors ahead of time. Thanks to my Kindle, I’ve downloaded a dozen samples, and I’m getting more revved up to go …
Write Along with Me 