Fear Not—An Invitation to the Freedom of Dependence
The men in my life are laying out clothes, filling up containers, packing enough for five days of their ten away in two cities where terror has struck again—London and Paris. And they’ll be standing on the beaches where some other mother’s boys landed and turned the waters red at the same ages as our […]
When Mother’s Day Reminds You of Death—The Way to Find Life
Mother’s Day, 2002 I called my mother to make sure she received the dozen red carnations I sent as a surprise. “They’re gorgeous! But you said you weren’t sending me flowers for Mother’s Day this year because of the bench.” “I know. But you’ve always told me flowers should be given to the living, not […]
Dust to Dust And The Peace that Comes with Letting Go
They carried her to the altar, their mother. They carried her, all ash in a small wooden box. They covered her with a white cloth, embroidered with a cross. A cross. Where Christ paid for our ultimate reconciliation—restored relation between holy God and sinner. Between sinners and sinners . . . All watched […]
UNRAVELING THE UNKNOWNS
He’s in critical condition with broken bones and a ripped up brain in an induced coma. He’s the 16 year-old brother of one of my former art students. Our families attended the same church for a few years. Headed to school last Friday morning, he comes to a curve. His car tumbles sideways—three times, I […]
What Has a Strong Hold on You?
How do you define “stronghold”? I used to think strongholds were just negative. Because most strongholds tear down and destroy. There’s only one Stronghold who laid down His life for us so we can have True Life now and forever. Jesus is the One-and-Only we can turn to, run to, cling to who will surely […]
Family Vacation Fiasco [How We Survive and Grow through the Breakdowns and Meltdowns of Transitions and Transmissions]
When January rolls in, we start reminiscing about family traditions, one being our annual ski trip “up nort” as the Uppers (people living in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan) like to pronounce their homeland. Every January for I don’t know how many years, we’ve been stuffing our car like those Johnsonville brats we Cheeseheads […]
Sacrificial Love and Letting Yourself Be Held By the Very Able Hand of God
Anne asked me. Said she needed me to come. Her past few phone messages in my voicemail sounded different—not quite desperate but certainly bold in expressing her request. “I need to see you.” Five strong words. Does a new diagnosis of Alzheimer’s do this to a person? When you’re 69? Do you suddenly wonder how […]
Dog Gone [When You’re Lost and Need to Know You’re Sought After Still]
She flew out the door with her friend at dusk on Friday night before Christmas. They had places to go, things to do. Two hours later, I began to worry. Darkness had enveloped the farm but they hadn’t come home. No sign of them. I whistled and called. Nothing. A silent night. I could feel […]
The Presence of Peace in the Midst of Grief
The second week of Advent, we light that second candle. The peace candle. Peace. I want that flame to touch every wicked thing around the world this Christmas. I want peace on earth and goodwill to spread towards all. This is what we sing this season, isn’t it? Peace? Goodwill? And yet, Aleppo’s without water […]
To Have and Hold Hope
“How can you sit and listen to people in pain all day long?” People often asked me this question when I worked as a therapist. Truth is, I viewed my job as a privilege to sit face-to-face with people in great inner pain, holding hope for them when they could not hold hope for themselves. […]
What To Do When You Feel Like A Freak
Our pastor’s kid hauled these freaks from the back garden and plopped them on the front porch. I thought they looked bad in the patch. Seeing them all together, all their deformities and discolorations on side-by-side display, kind of shocked me, honestly. How in the world did this happen? This is not what I […]
Why?
Jesus said to him, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.” John 14:6 Why? What’s the answer? I wonder. Consider the whole story of life, starting with a snippet . . . Watched a movie last night about the tragedy in Benghazi, four […]