Category: A Thoughtful Life
-
I got an email from a friend, a good friend. Not the kind that makes you feel wonderful and brings good times shared to mind. It was more of a punch in the gut, mouth-dropping type email. The kind that burdens your heart and leaves you feeling hurt and angry. My mind works fast and…
-
January seems like a great time to start something new. I’m not talking about a resolution that’s forgotten next week. No, this is more along the lines of forming new and better habits that are life changing and long-lasting. Just imagine, December 31, 2014 you look back on the year and count 12 significant changes…
-
2013 brought a lot of change into our lives. It was marked by great victories and difficult struggles. I am thankful for all of it. The victories directed me to see God’s grace abounding again and again. And those pesky, sometimes, huge struggles led me to greater faith and reminded me that I am always…
-
I have very few good ideas that I can claim as my own. So I’m thankful for all of you out there who are blessed with creativity and willing to share those ideas with people like me. One of the great idea finds for this fall, led to our family and our church putting together…
-
Some things in China just make no sense to westerners. It doesn’t matter how long you live here, how much of the language you speak, most westerners just aren’t going to understand all of the cultural nuances that surround daily life.
-
It’s little, and often strange, things that remind me of home. Korean writing on a sign, Chinese voices on the next aisle, the inside of an LG washing machine (I warned some were strange), shin ramen at Walmart, the smell of onion and garlic. When I least expect it, there it is. Lump in my…
-
Children. We hold their hands encouraging them to take their first steps. We pick them up, dust them off, and offer kisses and hugs when they fall. We’re their biggest cheerleaders. We watch them struggle. Pray for them daily, point them in the right direction, and even discipline them to help them get back on…
-
David…mighty warrior, King of Israel, musician…I’ve always admired David’s intimate knowledge of and relationship with the Father. His transparency in the Psalms gives us a rare look into the heart of a man as he admits his faults and acknowledges his needs. We watch his rise, his fall, his restoration and we relate to his…
-
It started with a move. We came up with every excuse to stay where we were, but our Father cleared it all away. He urged us forward and we stepped out in faith. Not only did our space and visibility increase, so did our expenses. Bills came due and of course there wasn’t enough money…
-
I woke up thinking of some sweet friends and family who have been walking on the edge for a while now. Actually, some have stepped over the line and are now falling head first into a pit of their own making. As I thought of these people, a verse came to mind. “The love of…