In many countries, this is Boxing Day. This special day after Christmas is a tradition started by elite Britishers of giving gifts to those who serve them throughout the year. The gifts are boxed and I suppose that’s where the name comes from. This is also St. Stephen’s Day, in honor of the first […]
Dec 15, 2019
Christmas Lights and Quiet Thoughts
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Our family has the tradition of lighting Advent candles on the Sundays before Christmas, then reading Scripture. The soft glow of the candle is peaceful and silent but it reflects a powerful message of hope and love. I wish that our world would stop for a moment and absorb this quietness and peace. Doesn’t Scripture […]
Oct 9, 2019
Batten Down the Hatches
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It seems that life is made up of one storm after the other, with peaceful stretches in between. When we feel tossed around by circumstances, it’s time to batten down the hatches and hold tight. One of my favorite poems is The Voyagers by Van Dyke: O Maker of the mighty deep, whereon our vessels […]
Aug 15, 2019
Troubles
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This morning as I look out of my window on the world, I see a quiet neighborhood, a sleepy, just-waking-up neighborhood with shadowy trees newly emerging from night, the dedicated walker striding up the hill, a few people driving to their jobs already, and I’m grateful for normalcy. If I looked beyond the obvious and […]
Jun 3, 2019
An Early June Morning
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What is there about an early spring morning before the sun comes up, when the grass is soggy with yesterday’s rain? Everything is hushed and listening for the robin’s song and the dove’s call to announce a new beginning. Leaves are still except when the whisper of a breeze stirs them. The wonder of it […]
May 28, 2019
When the Storm Becomes Vicious
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This time it was Dayton, Ohio, who received the fury of a turbulent storm. As I read about this, I thought how quickly and without warning people’s lives change; often, that change is forever. In a few moments time, a violent, twisting wind, or rising flood waters devastate lives and rearrange the future. Arkansas and […]
