A sojourn is a relatively short period of time when a person stays somewhere other than home. It’s a temporary stay or visit that’s usually associated with a specific purpose. During a sojourn, people are outside of their natural environment. They adjust to their new place of residence to some degree, but it never becomes [...]
My son Sky has always liked machines and big challenges. One vivid memory I have is of him driving our tractor across the field as Tony and I threw bales onto the hay wagon. Sky was only six or seven years old, so his feet barely reached the pedals. But he was grinning from ear [...]
“They were terrified and asked each other, 'Who is this? Even the wind and the waves obey him!'” (Mark 4:41) Every disciple of Jesus must grapple with this question – not just at the beginning of our relationship with Him, but at every stage following. Who is He? And how does that knowledge impact my [...]
In the aftermath of Derek Chauvin’s trial (the man convicted of killing George Floyd) many of us are wondering What is our role as followers of Jesus in all of this? Is social injustice an important enough cause to join forces with the world to overcome? Are we in fact negligent in our Christian duty [...]
When Mel Gibson’s movie came out (The Passion of the Christ) some might have been confused by the title, because the word passion is used today mostly to describe sex or something else we especially enjoy. “He has a passion for sailing,” we hear, or “she’s passionate about her work with kids.” But for centuries [...]
Vow renewal ceremonies have been around for a while, but only became popular in the 1970s. Now, in the U.S, they make up from 25 to 30% of all wedding ceremonies being booked. Some are elaborate and costly. TV star Rachel Ray and her husband treated their friends and family to a weekend in a [...]
I grew up in the turbulent 60s, graduating from high school in 1964. Sometimes we look back at this time in our history and giggle, thinking it was mostly about hippies and “flower power”, the Beatles, and miniskirts. But much deeper issues were brewing, bringing profound change. Civil rights protests were shaking the South, drugs [...]
“Be dressed ready for service and keep your lamps burning, like servants waiting for their master to return from a wedding banquet, so that when he comes and knocks they can immediately open the door for him.” (Luke 12:35-36) I’m praying for revival, and I hope you are too. Consistently. Fervently. Alone in my prayer [...]
When Tony and I met, I was still living with my parents, attending university in Wichita, Kansas. He was enrolled at Kansas University in Lawrence – two hundred miles away. We ended up at the same party in Lawrence one weekend and, as sometimes happens, our “chance” meeting developed into something we both wanted to [...]
Nothing hurts us like betrayal. It’s hard enough when an enemy turns on us, upending our lives with cruel sabotage. But when we’re betrayed by someone close to us, someone who’s shared life with us for some time, we’re stunned by the enormity of the pain it brings. As a quote I found online expressed [...]
Adventuring with God 