The words fall so glibly off my tongue — Merry Christmas. To my coworkers. To the lady who checked me out at the store. Sometimes, it’s even a courteous send-off in a work e-mail. I really do mean it. I don’t mean it to hurt. Sometimes it does. Elvis Presley first sang the song we hear this time of year…
Christmas and the Sears Catalog
Author’s Note: This is the third installment of our four-week Advent series. Biblical scholarship disagrees with the timing of Christmas and Jesus’ birth. That said, we’ll still take a four-week journey together to examine the meaning of the First and Second Advent in our lives. If you missed our first and second installments, please look them up on the Springtown…
Sing!
Author’s Note: This is the second in our four-week Advent series. The tradition of Advent is rarely mentioned in my faith tradition, but it is common in my family. Biblical scholarship disagrees with the timing of Christmas and Jesus’ birth. That said, we’ll still take a four-week journey together to examine the meaning of the First and Second Advent in…
Follow the Light
Author’s Note: Advent is a four-week season before Christmas that anticipates Jesus Christ’s arrival. Advent is rarely mentioned in my faith tradition, but it was common growing up in my family. Biblical scholarship disagrees with the timing of Christmas and Jesus’ birth. That said, we’ll still take a four-week journey together to examine the meaning of the First and Second…
A Train Across Your Road
“D’Rae, I’m having another gallbladder attack. I’m hurting so bad!” I heard the voice and knew instantly it was Jen, but did the phone even ring? Did I say hello? What is going on? “I’m coming,” I hear myself say. What time is it? Oh, it’s 9:45 pm! (That is one of the ways you know you are getting old…
Are You Worth Dying For?
For most of us, Pearl Harbor is just a page in a history book or a documentary on The History Channel. But even as the horrors of the attack fade, the powerful words of President Franklin D. Roosevelt ring loud — “Yesterday, December 7, 1941, a date which will live in Infamy, the United States of America was suddenly and…
Remember Not to Forget
We mean well. Our intentions are honorable. We want to remember not to forget. Busy work schedules. Doctor appointments. Vacations. Bills to pay. Our good intentions are soon dashed. That fall day marked the first anniversary of my brother Jeff’s death. It was a day I wanted to forget, but my heartache denied me that blessing. Everyone in my life…
Simon & Garfunkel & Valerie
“I went to sleep with gum in my mouth and now there’s gum in my hair and when I got out of bed this morning I tripped on the skateboard and by mistake I dropped my sweater in the sink while the water was running and I could tell it was going to be a terrible, horrible, no good, very…
Dear God, Thank You for My Carrot!
Facebook loves dredging up old memories. Truth be told, I usually ignore them! Not today. Six years ago, four generations of my family gathered for Friday evening supper. As was his custom, my father was offering the blessing. With two-year-old innocence, Emmaline struck a Norman Rockwell pose — her single carrot resting on a plate emblazoned with the word “Gratitude.”…
God and the Super Bowl
Some say God may have a problem on Super Bowl Sunday! When the Chiefs advanced to the Super Bowl, both Patrick Mahomes and owner Clark Hunt thanked God for their victory. And when Brock Purdy and his 49ers punched their ticket to the Big Game, he also gave glory to God for their victory. They’re not alone. When the Rams…