One of my favorite things to do in Youth Ministry is write curriculum. It gives me a chance to get my brain working and forces me to re-read chunks of the Bible (a spiritually healthy thing to do, I hear). And for this curriculum I read the Gospel of Matthew. Matthew...
One of the best ways to stay enraptured with the majesty and mystery of God is to learn more about the wonders of the natural world. Wasps are universally feared and disliked because of their stings, but they are amazing little creatures who have their important place...
Maya Angelou once wrote, “The ache for home lives in all of us, the safe place where we can go as we are and not be questioned.” For most of us, home indeed is the safe place we turn to in different stages of our life as a shelter from life’s storms. 2020 and...
“At least once, stop and sit and let nature find you.” This was the admonition Grant and I received from the volunteer who welcomed us to the Miami Beach Botanical Garden. The garden is a small enclave of green and quiet in the middle of fast, expensive cars, beach...
I have a lifelong friend I admire greatly. She is a few years older than me, and I always look to her as a role model, a confidant, and a friend. She is a very accomplished woman. She has a PhD in her field and works in a senior-level position in her job. She is an...
Already the Spring ephemerals are showing. These are the wildflowers that pop up in their glory but only stay in bloom a few days. Ephemeral comes from the Greek word ephemeros which means living only a day. They are, for example, trout lilies, bloodroot, Virginia...
“Walk at your own risk.” Signs emblazoned with these words dot a trail around a nearby office park. On recent sunny days, I’ve put on my headphones, listened to a podcast or guided meditation, and trekked through the woods that contain these warnings. “Walk at your...
“There’s something happening here,” FPC member said to me, placing her canned goods for Urban Ministry in the FPC van. She waved her hand up in the air, gesturing towards our campus. “I can feel it; it is amazing.” She smiled, hopped in her car, and drove away. I took...
A current bestseller has got me to thinking about the issue of what is natural and what is not. Is it natural to be good or to be bad? To be selfish or generous? The book is called Nature’s Best Hope: A New Approach to Conservation That Starts in Your Yard by Douglas...
Well, friends, 2021 is off to quite a start, isn’t it? I am afraid to say we have nowhere to go but up. I’ve thought that too many times as of late only to be proven wrong. As I write this, I am worried about what will happen on January 20. I am worried about the...
