Two particular stories in Scripture came to mind this morning as I was contemplating this question. One is from 2 Kings 18 and 19. King Sennacherib of Assyria was threatening King Hezekiah and the city of Jerusalem. His menacing words contained lies and misinformation mingled with bits of truth. This is the way of the…

A few weeks ago I found some goblets at my favorite antique store, “The Crooked Willow” just outside the little town where we work, Osakis, Minnesota. One of them was undoubtedly my Dad’s glasscutting work. I knew this would happen one day; and I often looked at antique stores to find crystal etched by the…

Jesus charged into the Temple in Jerusalem and chased out those who were swindling worshipers for their own benefit. Jesus’ zeal for God’s house meant that he would do anything to clean things up. We are all now God’s temple and the parallel here highlights our need for Jesus to charge into our lives and…

Jesus prayed that His disciples would live in unity. In His last hours on the earth, this was foremost in His thoughts (John 17). His greatest desire was that His individual disciples would function as “one”, that they would get along and work together and partner together for the single interest of God’s glory. Getting…

Kissing seems is a theme in my Bible reading these days. (Mark and I follow the Moravian daily texts, reading through the Bible every two years, and we just finished Absalom’s rebellion.) It’s got me thinking… Kissing has long been a political strategy used to win loyalty. I saw this scene played over and over…

“One Day At A Time,” my mug tells me, steaming with licorice tea. My daughter, Emily gave me that mug shortly after my dad took his leave. Dad died four weeks ago, a mere 91 years old. Letting go of him, was one of the hardest things I’ve had to do in my life. Holding…

When our son was four years old, he declared one of the most profound and true things I’ve ever heard. He was sitting in the back seat of the car (It’s so embedded in my mind that I can even recall where I was on Highway 96): “If you think you’re stupid, you’ll be stupid…

Messes are bothersome. Especially when they are someone else’s messes that spill over. Literal messes are one thing, but what of other people’s emotional muck that transforms our own lives in negative ways? I get angry when this stuff happens. But Jesus’ words to me quiet and calm my heart. He assures me to rejoice…

My friend Diana gave me a journal that she named, “I see you God.” It is a specific place to record moments when God seems to pull back the curtain of Heaven and address my world in ways that only He can. Some would think these things coincidental, but others know better. This story found…

Last weekend we spent a few days at our neighbor’s cabin in Wisconsin. We fished, played games, and watched a couple old movies like “Back To the Future” with Michael J. Fox. As I was cooking in the rustic kitchen our son, daughter, and son-in-law played a card game that they made up. I called…

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