God’s Shift as Protection, Faith Test, and Season Change
We all experience times of shift—literally and metaphorically. Have you ever wondered why? Sometimes, it’s the shift, change, or move from one season to the next. Sometimes, it’s a faith test designed to shift us. And sometimes it’s for our...
What we can afford, what we cannot afford, and God’s afford
“We can afford that,” Keith said when I asked him about possibly having to re-drill the wells for our geothermal system. Afford as in bearing the cost. With the drought, one of the wells seems to have gone dry. The deep well that provides water to the...
What Phase are you in: Growth, Flower, Fruit or Seed?
A phase is part of a cycle or course of development, as seen in Scripture, ourselves, and in the vegetation surrounding us. Remember the story about the cherry seeds that germinated in planters we kept on our deck in Alexandria and transplanted here...
The Route to Meaning, through the Wilderness, to the Cross
There’ve been times in my life when I thought the route I’d chosen was a good one. Sometimes it was, thanks be to God, but sometimes it wasn’t, and in that case always because of that “I.” The “I” who thought she’d found the route to meaning in this world—all by...
The short of it: short in stature, falling short, time is short
“The days are long, but the years are short,” said our accountant. When Keith and I first met him thirteen years ago, he and his wife were still having babies. Now his two oldest children are in college, one “baby” is in high school, and the youngest is in middle...
Outcome: negative, positive, and something to consider
While waiting for the result of a medical test, I naturally wonder about the outcome. Are blood markers below or above the normal range? Are skin or internal growths benign or malignant? Aging seems to bring more of these tests, and both positive and negative...