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4 Reasons to Celebrate Advent With Your Grandchildren
As a kid, I loved Advent. Tall skinny candles, three purple, one pink, and a white one in the middle, an evergreen wreath, and a countdown to Christmas. Each week at church, a family would come forward and light that week’s candle. Dad took charge so the youngest member didn’t set the church on fire. …
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Relationships: Easy As Pie, Not!
I’m the pie lady for Thanksgiving dinner. Apple for my sweet daughter-in-law. Sweet potato for my husband. Cherry and pumpkin pies for my kids—with loads of whipped cream, of course. I love pie, and because I am my grandmother’s granddaughter, I make them from scratch. Yes, crust too. None of that ready-made stuff. Trust me.…
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How to Write Your Own Obituary and Why You Should
When my grandmother died, her eulogy/obituary were . . . well, less than. Her life was reduced to a few sentences about her cooking, her hospitality, and her crafting abilities. Seriously? There was so much more. Where was the space for the Wahoo! games at Grandmother’s kitchen table, the steaks she and Papa cooked for my…
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Conflict Resolution: 5 Tips for Your Team
Ever feel like a referee? If you have children, then you’re no stranger to conflict resolution. How do we know what behavior to address and what to ignore? When do we throw the yellow flag and how do we best discipline for the infraction? How do we teach conflict resolution—to preschoolers? As any NFL referee…
Read More My Brother’s (Sister’s) Keeper
What does it mean to be my brother’s or sister’s keeper? The question takes me to Genesis 4. Cain had sinned. God encouraged him to repent. Instead, Cain vented his anger on his innocent brother Abel—and killed him. God posed the question of Abel’s whereabouts to Cain who shrugged it off with another question, “Am…
Read More Choose Joy
“Be joyful always.” 1 Thessalonians 5:16 NIV Joy. My intersections with this word tend to occur around December when Christmas carols move joy to the forefront. The rest of the year, my melancholy personality fights to find it. However, a recent writing project brought some joyful discoveries: Joy is commanded. “Be joyful always” is a command,…
Read More Walk with Me
My husband Russell and I plan to hike Half-Dome in Yosemite in the fall. We walk each weekend to prepare for the fourteen-mile hike. God calls us to walk with Him too. Stories spill from the pages of Scripture of those who did—and didn’t—walk with Him. Here are a few tips for walking together: 1.…
Read More Playing Favorites, Missing Out
Favorites. We mesh with some people like puzzle pieces snapping into place. Seamless. Easy. Click. Others jar us, grate our rough edges, and stretch our patience. Uncomfortable. Difficult. Scraaape. The apostle James gives no quarter, “My brothers and sisters, believers in our glorious Lord Jesus Christ must not show favoritism . . . If you really…
Read More Opposition: Pray—and Post a Guard
Big. Intimidating. Protective. Delivery men step back when they come to my door. I bought Valor because I’m home alone. A lot. At 5’5”, I’m defenseless against the average male. Valor gives me leverage. Jerusalem experienced defenseless too. Babylon destroyed the city. Though many Jews returned to their homeland, Jerusalem’s walls lay in ruins, leaving the…
Read More Do Something
“Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres.” 1 Corinthians 13:6-7 NIV The class should have come with a label: Hazardous to Your Health. Your spiritual health. I needed two hours of World Missions credit for my master’s degree, so I jumped at…
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