finding God in the wasteland (Isaiah 35:1)
I am about a third of the way through a book my sister gave me for my birthday. It's titled The Insanity of God, written by Nik Ripken. (The author writes under a pseudonym because of the nature of his work.) The Insanity of God is gripping, the kind of story that makes you laugh …
Continue reading The Call to Missions
Tomorrow morning we are leaving for Kentucky. On Wednesday, Will and I plan to take our children to the Creation Museum. (They are hopping with excitement!) Then the next four days will be spent in Leitchfield with my parents and all eight of my siblings and their families! It will be a noisy four days! I'm so …
Life is fragile. I stroke the downy cheek of my newborn son, and press him close to my heart. Wonder suffuses me, for life is fragile. ... Life is brittle. I watch the black clumps of Kansas soil falling into my grandma's grave. Sadness consumes me, for life is brittle. ... Life is brief. I …
Two years ago, my brother-in-law Sheldon drowned. How does a person begin to describe that kind of loss? Sheldon was quirky (remember the donkey mask?), funny, energetic, good with kids, and underneath all the energy was a gentle, serving, dreaming heart. That last year, Sheldon was becoming one of Will's best friends. He was intensely loyal, …
Here are a few of the things we've been doing this week. Last Sunday afternoon we went biking. (During the summer, we can bike in the evenings, but now it gets dark too early.) Biking around town does several things: it helps me get exercise, we get more familiar with the houses and streets, and we …
"Being careful is not as much fun as being friends," said Frances. "Do you want to be careful, or do you want to be friends?" This quote comes from one of the delightful Frances books, A Bargain for Frances. Frances gets fooled by her friend Thelma, so she pulls off a stunt to trick Thelma back. But …
As long as I can remember, I have loved reading missionary stories. Recently, I read (or re-read) three: Bruchko by Bruce Olson, Chasing the Dragon by Jackie Pullinger, and The Word Came with Power by Joanne Shetler and Patricia Pervis. While reading these stories, different things catch my attention and fill my ponderings for the days …
My oldest son had an especially difficult summer. When fall arrived, I expected his mood to brighten with the change of seasons. But it didn't. Then one morning, he found a black kitten on our doorstep. She was a fuzzy ball of cuteness, and Elijah took her right into his heart. Blackie lived in the house as …
What do you do with those deep desires lodged under your heart? In my post Delight Yourself in the Lord I talked about how our hearts ache for both fellowship with God and partnership with Him, mostly focusing on our longing to be one with Him. This post is directed toward the second part--our longing to be part of what He is …
Psalm 37:4 is one of my favorite verses. Delight yourself in the LORD, and he will give you the desires of your heart. (Psalm 37:4 ESV) Every time I have heard this verse expounded on, the explanation ran something like this: "Delight yourself in the Lord and He will change you to want what He …
