I like to cross things off my to-do list. I use tear-off notepads and make lists and lists of what needs to get done today and in the coming days. My lists include unwanted tasks as well as life-giving ones. Then I set to work to accomplish them and cross them off. Done. Finished. Wrapped up. Nice and neat. List tossed in the trash. While some of my friends enjoy the process, I find more delight in the completion. Only then can I rest.
Misc Devotional
In The Boat
Lake Brienz, Switzerland. Photo: Mark Burkholder (Mark 6:31-34) Then, because so many people were coming and going that they did not even have a chance to eat, he said to them, “Come with me by yourselves to a quiet place and get some rest.” So they went away by themselves in a boat to a … Continue reading In The Boat
Hearts and Spines
"Look for tangible expressions of God's intangible love," our pastor challenged us last week. What better place to see God's love than at Enchanted Rock State Natural Area in Fredericksburg, Texas. As Mark and I scanned the vistas for a sign—a heart in nature—we didn't see a thing. All we saw was a rock shaped … Continue reading Hearts and Spines
Pain and Hope
How does one accept the reality of pain and disappointment without losing hope? How do we surrender and face reality and yet not give up? How do we trust that God might never answer our prayer the way we want it and yet still keep asking for a miracle? How does one continue to experience loss and yet still have faith?
Racing Wagon
"I feel like I am driving a wagon at full speed and it's about to take off and drag me behind," I told the ladies at my table during a luncheon. Finally I had words to put to how I have been feeling about my life recently. My ministry, which I really love, is gaining … Continue reading Racing Wagon
Love Languages and Bling
My dear mother-in-law has given me expensive and beautiful jewelry for as long as I have known her. As a young bride, her gifts didn't really do that much for me since I was not a big bling kind of girl. Being more practical, I would have preferred a blender. In the early days I even questioned her love because gifts really aren’t my love language
Garden Walk
This morning I walked with God in a beautiful garden. But Eden it was not. While speculator by human standards and usually quite vibrant, today this garden looked a bit tired, a bit worn down. A few stubborn weeds could be seen among the carefully manicured beds. Desperate plants seemed to beg for mercy from … Continue reading Garden Walk
Rocks
The beach of Budva, Montenegro on the Adriatic Sea, left me breathless. Not a coral beach with shells and crabs like I am used to, but a beach composed of and covered in rocks. Rocks of such diversity and color. Black, brown, green, white, terra cotta, grey, lavender, and cream rocks. Lined, speckled, sparkly, rough, … Continue reading Rocks
