Do birthdays get better as we get older? Instead of a birth “day” some years, I have a birth “week”, finding fun ways to celebrate all week. Psalm 92 offers words of hope to all of us as we grow older; that we aren’t just getting older, we are getting better. Psalm 92 A hymn […]
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They refer to them as the “Leafies”—the surge of tourists coming to New England in the fall to enjoy the autumn colors. For years I had this on my bucket list, until I looked around me and realized—it’s hard to imagine the color could be any better than what we have here in Michigan with […]
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It used to be that Amazing Grace was the “go to” hymn for funerals. The strains of the music started and that was the cue for tears to start. That distinction now belongs to the hymn, On Eagle’s Wings. It seems I hear it at every Memorial Service or funeral I attend. Based on Psalm […]
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Someone once wrote a very popular book called, Men are from Mars, Women are from Venus. The premise is sound, but a better title would have been, Men are from Monster Truck Shows, Women are from Pampered Chef Parties. Once we understand there are differences, we can bridge them. Brad Reflections: What title would you […]
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“Our years come to an end like a sigh,” Psalm 90 tells us (9b). Will your life end like a sigh? A single breath let loose as a final “Amen” to a life well-lived? Or will you burn out quickly, like a candle burning at both ends? Paul speaks of this life as a race […]
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They met in grade school, exchanging insults on the playground. He pulled her hair. She stuck her gum on his seat in school, where it neatly lodged on his pants. They were together in high school, sharing triumphs and disasters, hopes and dreams, romance and heartbreaks, always remaining “just friends.” Then they went away to […]
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How deep is God’s love? How far and how wide? Psalm 89 has something to teach us about this. Steadfast Love The Hebrew word which is translated as steadfast love in the Revised Standard Version of the Bible, is mercy and loving kindness in other translations. I personally prefer the term steadfast love to mercy […]
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Everyone is Irish on St. Patrick’s Day, and when attending one of the many Irish Festivals popping up all over Michigan. In particular the one in Muskegon that goes on for four days of non-stop music, Irish beer and whiskey, Irish games and dancing. Together we celebrate all things Irish. If you marry an Irishman, […]
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“The rest is silence,” Hamlet’s last words – an interesting word choice for someone who never had an unspoken thought, or so it seems to me as he shared with us, the audience, all of his ruminations. He could have as easily said, “The rest is darkness.” The Prince of Denmark was no stranger to […]
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I don’t know if it is one of the world’s Top Ten Human Made Wonders, but it is definitely a wonder to me. What trip “up north” would be complete without stopping to look at the bridge, long and beautiful, stately, over an expanse of amazingly blue water? The bridge appears in the distance as […]
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