Advent – Season of Hope Who speaks to me? Someone I can trust? Will the words I hear withstand the test of time? Will they lead me to salvation–or despair? Who do I hear speaking to me in my darkness, speaking words of comfort, of hope? I want so much to believe what I hear, […]
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Advent – Season of Hope “Come, Lord Jesus,” she remembered teaching her children to sing as preschoolers as she lit the Advent wreath. It had been such a struggle to maintain some semblance of order for even five minutes, much less a semblance of prayer. She wondered, had it been worth the hassle, the struggle […]
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Advent – Season of Hope They were relieved to finally sit down after the day of Christmas shopping. The church was quiet as worshipers slipped into pews. It was a quiet oasis after fighting crowds and listening to Christmas “musak” all day. The plaintive strains of “O Come, O Come Emmanuel,” began, the first candle […]
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Advent – Season of Hope The nurse lightly touches the elderly woman’s shoulders as silent tears stream down the pale wrinkled cheeks, flowing unceasingly. The old man sits on a park bench remembering all that he has lost: his family, his friends, his career. He sits silently, saddened with lonely memories. The young woman sits […]
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Advent – Season of Hope Their two preschoolers were sound asleep in the back as they drove home after a long day at grandma and grandpa’s. It was a welcome relief from the bickering, poking, pinching and whining that usually accompanies such trips. “Mom, he’s looking at me!” “Dad, he’s touching me!” He gazes through […]
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Advent – Season of Hope “You promised!” my children protest. How did “I’ll think about it” become a promise? How did the merest suggestion that I would consider their request take on the trappings of an oath? The answer eludes me. To them, a suggestion is as good as a promise. They believe in that […]
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Advent – Season of Hope “Soon,” a voice whispers in the night to the woman in prayer awaiting the birth of her first child. “How soon?” she responds. She hears no answer. “Soon,” the dying man hears. “But when?” he asks. No answer “Soon,” the voice says to troubled parents waiting for news […]
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In a world of hopelessness and despair, in a world filled with false hope based on fleeting promises and false gods, true hope often eludes us. Hope is more than an abstract concept concerned with some distant future. Genuine hope must be connected to everyday reality yet grounded in the confident assurance that these things […]
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The farmer is intimately acquainted with the seasons of nature. His livelihood depends on it. He knows when it’s time to plant, the growing season, time to harvest and time to let the land lie fallow. He reads the signs of the time in nature to know when to reap, when to sow. His life […]
Read More As a much needed diversion on this cloudy election day, I’m sending you the fall color report from my bike ride along Falling Waters Trail yesterday. There’s still plenty of color around. Get out and vote then enjoy the leaves.
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