We all want to make a difference, change the world, leave a mark. I believe it’s an innate desire. The problem isn’t so much in wanting this, but in defining what it looks like … or, rather, what it doesn’t look like. Ask, “Who’s making a difference?”, and we usually reply with names of those […]
Seasonal
Abundance in Nature and in Life
Abundance is my One Word for One Year this year. As I wrote before, I didn’t choose this word for a particular reason. In fact, I had a different word picked out. But God quietly whispered this word to me in January, and I accepted. I’ve noticed abundance in ways I wouldn’t have without focusing […]
The Irony of the Longest Day
Today marks the summer solstice, the longest day of the year, for those of us in the Northern Hemisphere. We had a glorious sunrise this morning. And we plan to watch the sun head down tonight as we catch fireflies. My son is ecstatic! In between, we’ll have adventures, and normal life, and unplanned for […]
Book Ideas for Summer
My love of books was confirmed today when I went to my digital Hoopla account (available through our library!) and noticed I have 146 books marked to read at some future date. Ha! To be fair, some of those are marked for my son, but … still. And that’s not counting my amazon lists or […]
The Heart of Easter: As Seen in Psalm 119
I’m spending the year in Psalm 119. (Read more here and find tips and reading plans to do the same over the course of 1 year or 6 months.) It’s been refreshing and nourishing and, at times, surprising. For example, it’s not the chapter I would typically turn to in order to contemplate Easter. Yet […]
Helping Children Wonder at God, the Creator
This week we found tulips pushing up in our yard, had wind blow our gas grill across the deck, and went puddle jumping (more like mud slogging) with friends! Spring is on its way here, and I couldn’t be more excited! In spite of pollen, tornadoes, and poison ivy, spring is my favorite season. I […]
Non-Traditional Bible Versions + My Story (Part 2)
(This the second post in a series on Bible versions. You can read the first post about how I Corinthians 13 came alive to me in a new way, here.) I never intended to regularly use The Message paraphrase. Just like I never intended to live where I’m living now. And like I never intended […]
Valentine’s Day + Non-Traditional Bible Versions (Part 1)
One morning last week I decided to read a biblical passage about love. It seemed fitting, after all, since Valentine’s Day was at hand. I chose I Corinthians 13. The obvious choice! I wanted my heart and mind oriented towards loving others during this season. I expected to come away thinking about love, or perhaps […]
Christmas Longing: Made for Something More
Christmas! The season brings to mind words like celebration, joy and delight. And yet, celebrations can fall flat, joys can be short-lived and delight can be overshadowed. Nostalgia floods us with wonderful memories. It can also leave us longing for the way things used to be. We miss family, home, traditions. We feel deeply the […]
Summer Reading: Books for Enjoying Life
We started 100 days of summer at our house today – our plan to embrace the fun of summer and enjoy life while we practice counting too! One fond memory I have of summer is reading. I’m pretty sure we went to the library every week when I was a kid. I’m also positive that […]