Advent is the four weeks leading up to the celebration of the birth  of Jesus Christ on December 25.  Part of how my family and I watch for his coming is by making an Advent Wreath similar to the one shown here.  To watch for the coming of Christ you must consciously quiet yourself.  QuietingContinue reading "Four weeks of longing, watching and hoping!"

"Whatever you do, in word or deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him."  Colossians 3:17I give thanks to God the Father for my wonderful family, for my health, for my home, for plenty to eat, for steady employment, for health insurance, for cars thatContinue reading "Give thanks for the Lord is Good"

Charles Moore writes: "As a child, I could never put the holiday and the purpose of giving thanks together. Aunt Dorie would come drunk and weep at the table. No one ever knew why, and no one asked. Grandpa refused to speak to Grandma. My older brother showed his face only at the meal. Otherwise,Continue reading "Be careful about too many holiday expectations"

Kierkegaard said, "Providence watches over each of us as we journey through life, providing us with two guides: Repentance and remorse.  The one calls us forward. The other calls us back."Think of your own journey through life.  I don't think I've met another human who did not have some bitter regret about some aspect ofContinue reading "Repentance and Remorse both guide us in life"

Don't you worry about Jesus finding you in the crowd of humanity.  "Jesus entered Jericho and was passing through.  A man was there by the name of Zaccheaus; he was a chief tax collector and was wealthy.  He wanted to see who Jesus was, but because he was short he could not see over theContinue reading "If you want to be found, Jesus will find you!"

Johann Christoph Arnold, a writer in the Bruderhof community writes, "When things look dark and hopeless, that is the time to find out who your friends and neighbors really are. Or do you think you are the only one who is afraid? Look with new eyes at the people you meet daily, and you willContinue reading "Are you afraid?"

I just finished Pamela Paul's Pornified -- How Pornography is Transforming Our Lives, Our Relationships, and Our Families.  (Henry Holt books, 2005)Paul's book addresses the incredible demand for pornography.  She interviewed more than a hundred people (approximately 80 percent male) about the role pornography plays in their lives.  Her book is a sobering (to myContinue reading "Stunning in Scope"

You see a sign like this and and you smile.  You thought you were just a plain, old Christian, didn't you?Read I Corinthians 1:10-17, if you wonder how long this kind of thing has been going on?   Verses 11 and 12 say, "My brothers and sisters, some from Chloe's household have informed me that thereContinue reading "Are you a general or a regular believer?"