Our Life Group was discussing knowing God and how the relationship changes over time. Someone mentioned a quote by Brother Lawrence, “The more we know Him, the more we will desire to know Him. As love increases with knowledge, the more we know God, the more we will truly love Him. We will learn to love Him equally in times of distress or in times of great joy.” Then another asked, “Have you ever felt that better knowing God makes you fear him more or less?”…
Read MoreCaught on the Dot
Most of us have heard the line, “When you're up to your neck in alligators, it's hard to remember your objective is to drain the swamp."
Good advice for life. We don't have to allow the present to dominate our thoughts and emotions. Let's not get so obsessed by so enjoying the present that we ignore saving for retirement. Let's not get so obsessed with our current problems that we ignore more serious but less immediately urgent ones. I struggle with that, particularly in…
Read MorePerfectly Imperfect!
Many Bible passages trouble me. They push my limits; they invade my comfort zone; they require following Jesus as more commitment than I sometimes want to give. The worst, for me, came with Jesus’ statement, “Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect.” We tend to define perfect as flawless or exact. Dang, that doesn’t sound like me at all. Humorously, the older I get the better I get at spotting my flaws. And we can’t quibble—the perfect used for the Father is the same grammatically as our target.
In the original language, the word includes being…
Read MoreBe a Hammer
An editor once asked about my writing goals, and I answered we write for either therapy or impact, and I focus on impact. Yes, they overlap, and my writing changes me, but impact dominates. Ironically within days, a quote by St. Dominic came up on Facebook, “A man who governs his passions is master of his world. We must either command them or be enslaved by them. It is better to be a hammer…”
Read MorePurposes Fulfilled
John Southwood and I led 6 people on a month-long mission trip to Penasco, a small town close to Taos. Two of us rode bikes, four rode in the van. The many abandoned old homes along the Arizona roadside grabbed my attention. Made of stone or blocks or wood. Many with missing roofs, all deserted. People built them, lived in them, worked to scrape out a life in the blazing desert, only to leave them. So why did they take off?
Read MoreLove is a Feeling--Really?
“Love is a feeling you feel when you feel you’ve never felt that feeling before.” I first heard that from marriage counselor and author, Norm Wright. And while slightly over the top, it does reflect our society, doesn’t it? We go by feelings, by our gut. That’s why the pic above means so much. The morning in Idaho started off pretty chilly, and we geared up for cold weather, including insulated pants. Insulated pants that you can only remove with great difficulty and flexibility, particularly if you keep your boots on. But…
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I Am Young
The older I get, the more I look back over my life. Wise decisions, foolish ones, abrupt ones, planned ones. Am I content with it? Will God be? Much of life I’ve taken it as it comes—should I have been more intentional? How can these ponderings inform the time I have left?
A few months back, some random song came on the radio, no clue as to the singer nor title, but one line struck me and I wrote this, just for fun.
I am young
my soul is free….
Read MoreIt Ain't Over Till...
The biblical word for patience literally means long-suffering. Guess that accurately describes my life as fan of the Los Angeles/Anaheim/California/Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim. I’ve lived and died with them. This tease climaxed on May 18, showing both greatness and ineptitude. Their game with the Athletics (not sure where they call home now) followed a six-game losing streak in all. They earned the worst won/loss record in all of major league baseball. Yes, I cry.
A’s pitcher J.T. Ginn allowed no hits the first 8 innings. Said his manager…
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