Thinking on these things . . .

It was dark and very late. It was snowing and cold. I was tired, so tired, and in the middle of nowhere. I didn't know where I was. I had no idea of where I was in relation to where I wanted to be. So I climbed in the car and hit a button. The button said "Go Home". I wanted to be home. But I didn't know how to get there. Yet all I needed to do was to follow the steps on the GPS. If I just did what it said I was certain that, after a while, I would be home; where I wanted to be Even though I didn't know how to get there, I would get there. It wasn't up to me to find my way home; I just had to want to go there. When I asked to be lead back home, I was. My ability to get home had nothing to do with my skills. I got home because I knew I needed help and I knew to ask. Sometimes we wander from home because we're chasing something and become so engrossed that we don't realize how far away we've gotten. Sometimes we pack our bags in defiance and with re...

What are you looking for? My keys My shoes A better job Happiness Love My purpose in life What are you looking for? “The following day (after the baptism of Jesus), John was again standing with two of his disciples. As Jesus walked by, John looked at him and then declared, ‘Look! There is the Lamb of God!’ Then John’s two disciples turned and followed Jesus. Jesus looked around and saw them following. ‘What do you want?’ he asked them.” (John 1:35-39) Older Bible versions ask “What seek ye?” What are you looking for? What are you looking for? If you stopped right now – no seriously – if you stopped reading and answered that question in your own heart, where no one else would have to know your answer, what would you say? What do you want? What are you seeking? What are you looking for? Did you stop? Do you have an answer? Stop. Take a minute. What do you want? If you found a genie in a bottle and had three wishes… ...

There are certain, shall I say, grandiose moments of ministry. The symphonic choir anthem, the solo whose notes soar into the sanctuary and words into hearts, the well thought out and inspiring sermon, the perfectly planned and executed event, the challenging Bible study in which students leave anxious to learn out more. Of course there are also the private moments - the desk of a pastor with tomes of knowledge, or windows of the Internet, opened as a sermon is prepared, the shuffle of music as a choir works through new pieces, the arrangement of chairs as the Sunday school room is readied, the plinking of piano keys as new music is learned and the tuning of guitar strings as a worship team prepares to practice. And then there are those moments that seem most unlike what could be considered "ministry"... This occurred to me as I was making a billion copies for Sunday school - okay, not a billion, more like a few hundred. The morning found me in Saturday clothes, which are ver...

I was having lunch with a friend who, realizing she was famished, confessed she really hadn't eaten in the past few days. She went on to say that she didn't realize she was so hungry until she tasted the food. I have a chiropractor who has explained that we get so accustomed to feeling bad with sore muscles or things out of joint that we forget what it feels like to be healthy. I have it on authority, not my own unfortunately, that when you start to exercise consistently you have a new level of energy. We are amazingly adaptable people, which is good, because life calls for many adaptations; but it's also bad because sometimes when we adapt to a lower level we forget how good it really can be. Tasting is a powerful concept because it has the ability to open up whole new avenues for us. My children have just seen a musical theater production for the first time: their world has a whole new desirable element in it. I have just discovered a new musical group: I have many record...

Before we get too far from Christmas, let's look back on this verse - in the Old King James Version of course because that is the way we first heard and probably memorized this story (and it's also the way Linus quotes it in A Charlie Brown Christmas... "And so it was, that while they were there, the days were accomplished that she should be delivered." (Luke 2:6) I've been snared by that phrase "the days were accomplished." Having been pregnant myself, I know what it feels like waiting until the days are accomplished: near the end they s-l-o-w down and s-t-r-e-t-c-h way out. Apparently I'm not so good with "going the distance." I became very aware of this during an unexpected adventure on a recent trip. I'd hiked down the Waimea Canyon about a 1/2 mile, and when I say down, I mean down into the canyon - it seemed there weren't three level steps together. And now it was time for the trip back up. After a few minutes I realize...

I am a birthday girl. I love birthdays! Not mine necessarily, but yours. I love the fact that there is a day to celebrate you and all you are to me and a perfect opportunity to tell you how glad I am you are in this world and in my world. What about your other birthday? The one I grew up hearing called your "spiritual birthday"? What about that day that you accepted Christ as your Lord and your Savior - have you celebrated that? It's a different kind of celebration; very personal and very awe inspiring. For it is to realize that the Almighty God, Creator of Heaven and Earth, reached down and whispered to your heart and invited you to be His child. Whatever day it was, however long ago it was, that was the day that you heard God's voice. He chose to speak to you. And consequently God has given you permission to speak your heart to him and hear his voice all the days of your life left here on earth and then forever as you will be with him in heaven. So when is your bi...

This picture is a trail. Seriously. This is the path I have to take. Do you see a path? I didn’t. What you can't see is just how steep this trail is, about a 45 degree angle... All I saw were rocks, boulders if you will, and this “path” looked more like the channel for water running down the mountain than a pathway for people attempting to climb to the top. I stood there looking at it, thinking about myself and how ill prepared I was to scale this. Other hikers had passed me who were well prepared. They had packs, hiking boots, hats, and special hiking sticks. I, however, was adorned in a sundress covering a swimsuit with my normal “running around on errands” gym shoes. Yeah. So not prepared for this. I thought I was just heading for the beach – a little sun, a little snorkeling … instead I’m standing on the beginning of the Na Pali coastline in a dress and muddied shoes and holding a branch ripped off a tree root for my hiking stick. My only choice was to move forward. As I did, ...