Words have power. False words have power to kill. Our United States Constitution protects the right to free speech, but it does not protect the right to use words in ways that destroy or kill. On June 14, 1920, Irene Tusken and her boyfriend, Jimmie Sullivan, lied about a sexual assault on...
“In those days a decree went out…” But babies will come despite. No king or puffed potentate or powers beyond can order birth. The days before, Mary struggles. Lying down, sitting up, pacing floor, no position is comfortable. Sleep is short. The baby kicks her bladder...
Since all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God; they are now justified by his grace as a gift, through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus. – Romans 3:23-24 The other day I was checking out at the Har Mar Cub when a woman tapped me on the shoulder and then handed me a Cub...
I love Advent. And how appropriate it is as we go through Covid-19 with its sickness, shut downs, and struggle. God’s people in the Old Testament cried out for deliverance—from slavery in Babylon, from continued foreign threats, and for a Messiah to give them hope & assurance...
Blessings of the Season! I hope you are finding joy and peace in this holiday season. I wanted to share this beautiful Advent Beatitude that my friend, Karen Olson, wrote. Karen lives in Oregon and is a Pastor and a Spiritual Director. She shared this with me and gave me permission to pass it...
As Thanksgiving has been approaching (and is now here!) I’ve been thinking about gratitude a lot lately. When the boys were little we used to go around the circle before dinner and talk about what we were thankful for in the past year. Some years we would hear things like “I’m...
How are you feeling this week as Thanksgiving approaches? This year it is distressing that we are not able to gather together for Thanksgiving in the ways we are used to doing. Thankfulness probably does not come as easily in a time of pandemic! In the book of Colossians, chapter 3, the...
I’ve written before about fear. There is lots of it going around…touching each of us in some form. Fear of catching the Covid-19 virus…of getting very sick…of dying from it... or having a loved one die from it. Fear of the other political side…socialists!...
As I stared into the incredible Grand Canyon last week, and as the vertigo swirled over me, I felt incredible small. The immensity of the hole and the myriad colors and textures is overwhelming. Then, as I read the interpretive signs along the Rim Trail, I gained a deeper sense of why I felt...
Wednesday, the day after elections and the world awaits with anxiety unabated. I arrive at the DMV office to have the lienholder removed from my car’s title. A simple task with all appropriate paperwork ready—and I find the line long. Coronavirus continues to slow society and insist...