A Walking Advertisement for Christ

My salvation is an issue between me and my Maker and your salvation is an issue between you and Yours. My job, as one seeking to live a Christian life, is to be a good advertisement for the way to God demonstrated in the life of Christ. For me, that’s an in-body experience. If we […]

I Am not A.I.

A.I., you and I are different. I feel. I feel the rays of the sun warming my face, the chill of the cold deep in my bones, the pressure of your hand holding mine and mine, resting in yours. I feel the jitters when test scores are posted, the wrenching when news isn’t good, the […]

I am that child

I just can’t imagine God saying, “Sit down and shut up!” Can you?Or, “Children should be seen and not heard.”Or even, “Sit still and mind your manners.” Yes, we are children, daughters and sons of the Most High. But, “sit up and eat your peas,” just isn’t the conversation I expect to have at the […]

The Space Between Gratitude and Glory

“You can make people feel,” he told me. That’s high praise, coming from a world famous poet and a marvelous compliment coming from a person who is in touch with “all the feels.” But it’s not me “making people feel.” The stories I share and the way I share them is thanks to the people who […]

Quitting is the best thing he ever did…

Bill, sweet man, I just met him. Honest, open, friendly, kind. Shares a bit about himself and his family. Got three kids, “all medical,” he says. “The oldest used to be a doctor, but he quit.” “Says quitting is the best thing he ever did.” “Says, now he gets along with his wife…” Bill shakes […]

We, the prodigal people

“There was a man who had two sons. The younger one said to his father, ‘Father, give me my share of the estate.’ So he divided his property between them. “Not long after that, the younger son got together all he had, set off for a distant country and there squandered his wealth in wild living.” Luke 15:11-13 We, the […]

In-formed by Love, not News

The gruesome experience “informed” his art. The break-in and near death experience, “informed” his life’s course. The death of her mother by suicide “informed” her field of study. The assault she survived “informed” her very life. What happens in our lives in-forms us. What we experience forms us, on the inside. We say we live in an […]

Invited to Rest

The lake is glorious. Restful, peaceful, serene. It doesn’t shout, “Come, play with me!” It doesn’t tease, “Lookie what I’m doing.” It doesn’t tempt with rowdy revelers splashing and sailing and fishing. Well, there are quite a few fishing. No, the Lake at Junaluska just is. It is rest. It is peace. It is serene. […]

United to Love: Rally Day 2018

We knew they were coming. The group of white supremacists had been issued a permit to gather in Lafayette Park, on this, the one-year anniversary of the “unite the right” event in Charlottesville. At their 2017 gathering, Heather Heyer, a counter-protester, was killed, while others were physically injured and their city was left scarred and […]

Lord, hear our prayer

You have given us a world of beauty, and we have spoilt it. A world to feed us, and yet many go hungry. A world of riches, and we are unwilling to share. A world to care for, and we think only of ourselves. Forgive us, gracious God, for those times your heart is saddened […]