You might be like that man in the synagogue. The crippled one. The man with the withered hand. This may as well be your name. It is the thing that defines you. This is what you carry with you—this disability that has sidelined every dream or plan and directed your life’s path. This is what … Continue reading A story for shriveled people
Five Minute Friday: Church Dear Church, You are jars of clay, all of you, and you should stop pretending otherwise. In your plain selves you carry richest treasure, the mightiest power, and that is the miracle. Why are you surprised? You are indeed afflicted in every way, perplexed persecuted struck down. But can you see … Continue reading A Letter to the Church
Five Minute Friday: Could Arms crossed, I glare out the window at the falling snow. Usually the first snowfall is welcomed and celebrated in this house, but not today. At least, not by me. This is all wrong. It is September. The eighth of September. September is my favorite month, the month when everything turns golden, when … Continue reading Choosing What Could Be
Five Minute Friday: Loud If you drive through the valley and up the mountainside toward the old ghost town, there’s a place on the side of the road where you can stop and see the Cascades. If you pick your way down the hill and sit on the boulders, you can see the Chalk Creek … Continue reading Loud
I always pictured belief to be the tall figure of Abraham counting stars, laughing under the sparkling joy of a promise. Or the voice of the fiery prophet calling in the wilderness and the rock-sure conviction of the way. You said to abide and that seemed simple when in the company of these, the … Continue reading Help my belief
It happened at the very beginning, when that crafty serpent whispered, "Did God really say . . . ?" Doubt crept into Eve's heart, and she saw the shining object of her desire that had been forbidden to her, and she reached out her hand and took it. The questions begin right there, don't they? … Continue reading Doubt and walk on anyway
The politicians hated him. They saw in him something they did not have or understand, and this was a threat. His faith was a menace. The law they manipulated into place was pointed straight at him. He knew that. He was no fool. You’re so confident, they muttered. Let’s see what happens when we demand … Continue reading Choosing the Lions
(The Screwtape Letters by C.S. Lewis is a fictional series of letters from a senior demon in Satan's army, named Screwtape, to his junior nephew, Wormwood. In the letters, Screwtape is training Wormwood in techniques to attack the "patients" (humans) and win the war against the "Enemy," who is God. Please note, the following letter was written by me, … Continue reading The Further Letters of Screwtape
Five Minute Friday: Refrain Refrain: The part of the song or poem that is emphasized or repeated. The chorus. In other words, the part you remember. The part that gets stuck in your head. Refrains are powerful. Consider the songs from your childhood that you still know: “Yes, Jesus loves me, yes, Jesus loves me … Continue reading Refrain
Thank you, dear Noelle, for the inspiration for this post. No one notices her slipping into the crowd, but she is used to that. She prefers anonymity. She would rather live alone in the shadows than endure the stares, the whispers, the pity. She may have been beautiful. Now, she doesn’t know. There is … Continue reading Daughter
