“I will extend peace to her like a river . . .” (Isa. 66:12)
God can speak to us anywhere, through anything. Often, he uses nature. After all, nature is his creation, and his fingerprints are all over it. Over the years, I’ve found peace by taking walks, enjoying the fresh air, and studying the things that God has made. But I’ve found the most peace—the place where God speaks to me the most clearly—near water. Continue reading “Peace like a River”
This is what the Lord says—your Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel: “I am the Lord your God, who teaches you what is best for you, who directs you in the way you should go. (Is. 48:17)
When I was growing up, my family went on a road trip almost every summer. My dad, a teacher, had summers off, and since his mom lived in Nevada, we would take off and explore various points of the West on our way to visit her. Continue reading “The Map for Our Lives”
Paul, a servant of Christ Jesus, called to be an apostle and set apart for the gospel of God . . . (Rom. 1:1)
On a recent trip to Michigan to visit my brother, my family and I wanted to find one of the excellent roadside produce stands the area is known for. We had almost given up on finding one when a trip to a nearby state park took us by an Amish farm with a roadside stand. The stand was set so far back from the road that we weren’t sure it really was one, so after exploring the state park, we decided to see if we could find it again.
We did, and what a fun experience it was. Items were placed on shelves and tables and inside a cooler that wasn’t turned on (no electricity!), with price tags attached or on signs in front of the items. A bucket to collect payment sat on one of the tables. No one manned the stand—it was completely on the honor system. The stand was just a few feet from the house, and while we shopped, we could hear the women inside chattering away in a language we couldn’t understand, most likely preparing supper based on the time of day. Continue reading “Set Apart”
And my God will meet all your needs according to the riches of his glory in Christ Jesus. (Phil. 4:19)
In my last blog post, I wrote about how Charlie Bones played so hard that he ran into a doorframe, gave himself a concussion, and had to spend the night in the puppy ICU. (You can read that post here.) Five days after that, he started having symptoms again—wobbliness, lethargy, and sensitivity to touch. He hadn’t hit his head again, but we had gone for a short walk. I worried that I’d allowed him to do too much too soon, and back we went to the hospital for more tests. Continue reading “Update on Charlie Bones”
This post appeared previously on February 28, 2021.
“Jesus replied: ‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’” (Mt. 22:37)
In 1964, President Lyndon B. Johnson issued the first proclamation to make February American Heart Month. With the ongoing, global COVID pandemic, paying attention to our heart health carries even more importance since the virus impacts the heart. Continue reading “The Heart: What Makes Us Who We Are”