…When Our Tears Touch the Heart of God… I HEARD HER VOICE CRACKING as she described the situation in her marriage to me over the phone. She paused briefly, cleared her throat, and resumed her story. I could tell she was trying to hold back her emotions. At the end of our conversation, I asked if I could pray with…
FEELING THE NEED for a concentrated time of prayer one morning, I stepped onto the patio with Bible in hand. I felt unsettled and discouraged. Things were not going as I thought they should, and I felt my heart tugging in several directions. The needs in my life seemed numerous. I longed for direction, but my prayers seemed to hang suspended…
SITTING BENEATH THE STARS at a Christmas concert in the park, I listened to the familiar strains of “We Three Kings” soaring sweetly into the air. As I lifted my eyes to gaze through the interplay of branches above me, my mind drifted with the words of the song. I thought about those three kings and the star they followed. …
SO HERE WE ARE in the midst of this messy political season– accusations, half-truths and, contradictory statements swirling around us from everywhere. How do we navigate through the confusion to land on the truth of where God would lead us? In the last few weeks my Bible study has been studying Jesus’ letters to the seven churches in Revelation. In…
THIS FATHER’S DAY I want to recognize a particular group of dads who may approach the day with a bit of apprehension. These are dads I sometimes get emails from who are persevering even in the midst of separation or divorce. Their wives have left or asked them to leave, and the pain of being separated not only from their…
This is what the Sovereign Lord says to these bones: I will make breath enter you, and you will come to life. Then you will know that I am the Lord. Ezekiel 37:5, 6b When the city arborist stopped by to tell us they had received a grant to plant new trees in our neighborhood, we were delighted. We would…
Recently I sat at a table having dessert with four women who are presently in different stages of transition after marital crisis, some in recovery, others experiencing continued uncertainty and/or upheaval. One of the women whose marriage had made tremendous progress toward healing, began talking about the importance of “letting go,” a subject I also talk about frequently. The young…