The shepherds were watching their flocks the night that Christ was born. The wise men were far to the east when the Christ star appeared, doing whatever wise men do. Joseph and Mary were crowded into a stable in Bethlehem for a census decreed by an emperor who was merely concerned about his tax base, …
Light in the Darkness
I am simply not a morning person. I’ve tried over the years to press myself into a schedule that more closely approximates my husbands, especially when our children were small and insisted on being awake with the sun. This is my predicament once again with small grandchildren, but try as I might, I just cannot …
Obedient To The Call
I’m used to God living and moving freely inside my head. He has unimpeded access to my thoughts and knows my words before I speak because I surrendered my life to Him in Christ and His Holy Spirit abides in me. His work in this season of my life involves my learning to let Him …
Special Privilege
It’s officially December and Christmas is only a few weeks away. Yet December twenty-fifth would pass like any other day unless I choose to observe its significance and celebrate it. Since it falls on a Sunday, I will attend a worship service at my local church and share a meal with family, but between now …
Impress Them
My precious sister loves my children well, loves them like her own, even before she had two girls of her own. She and my daughter are very much alike as God designed them. Both taught 5th grade for three years before staying home with children. Both love to bake and their love language is giving …
What’s For Dinner?
My husband hit a home run with dinner plans when he asked if he could pick up a specific meal from a specific restaurant for us one evening. In our thirty-one years of marriage, we’ve had plenty of exchanges involving what we’d have for dinner that sound like echoes. What do you want? I don’t …
Missed My Window
I’ve only experienced Black Friday in the early hours just after midnight once. Though it’s largely online now and spans several weeks leading up to and beyond the Friday after Thanksgiving, I remember a time when I avoided it at all costs. Then my daughter, in her early teens, began hearing from her friends about …
Living Under A Shadow
Thomas is one and a fledgling walker. His mom insists that he hold her hand for safety in parking lots and on sidewalks, but he is free to roam inside his playroom or fenced yard. Sometimes he still chooses to hold her hand if the ground is particularly uneven or he’s in unfamiliar territory. I …
Seeing With Fresh Eyes
My niece, Anna, ran for her phone to take a picture of the red skyline above the lake in my backyard tonight. She snagged her sister by the arm on her way out the door. Hearing them exclaim over the beauty of the sunset reminded me of how many times I’ve been stopped in my …
Where is your Damascus?
The spring of my daughter’s wedding, she asked if we could ride the Virginia Creeper Trail together. We traveled to Damascus, the midpoint of the thirty-five mile trail, rented bikes and chartered a lift to the trailhead seventeen miles up in Whitetop. That first year was perfectly magical! We shared a quaint little room in …
A Fitting Reply 