I really did think he would cry when I said, “Lowe’s. I want to go to Lowe’s for my birthday.” He had himself all set to endure someplace like The Dress Barn for our annual shopping date. But I had my heart set on new bedside lamps for our bedroom, so to Lowe’s we went. Light is the theme of… Read More
Why Your Face Is Important in The World
At 3:00, I walked down to the normal pick-up place for the preschoolers, where I called the name of my young charge so I could get him home. I heard a little girl say, “You have a smiley face.” When I looked down, she was pointing at me. “Are you talking to me?” I asked. “Yes,” she said. “You have… Read More
The Great Labor Force And Its Influence in Evil Times
I try –I really do. I try to have other things to talk about, but it always comes back to the book I am reading. This is why you should pat my husband on the back when you walk by, maybe bring him chocolate chip cookies every once in a while. Because the poor man left his parents and cleaved… Read More
Pray This Incredible Prayer for Yourself
Maybe you know the feeling –when you’re heading into a crowded place and you don’t know where you’re going. You whisper threats to your husband if he dares lose you, and you grab onto his jacket because he’s your only hope of getting where you need to go. But what if you could be the one leading the way? In… Read More
Ten Ways to Light up The World Today
I was inspired this weekend, by a man from India who came and spoke to our church on behalf of the Pardhi people. They are the lowest people in Indian society, not even considered in the caste system and treated as subhuman. Their literacy rate is 2% (and you can imagine how that pained me.) As the man began to… Read More
What Can We Do Against Great Evil?
On Tuesday morning I was crabby -the kind of crabby that you know is unreasonable but that rises up inside you as a great beast. I was afraid for the very safety of my guys. My son had left a mess where he had been sitting in the living room the night before, and I could not believe the anger… Read More
Trusting God for the Value of Your Work
I don’t often talk to you about how strange this process of writing is, but I feel like you should know about Thursday night. I had a thought on my mind for a few days and finally got it down on paper. (I still say paper, even though it is a Word document. Paper sounds more enchanting, doesn’t it?) Then… Read More
The Power of a Good Man’s Voice
We stood in a triangle in the classroom –the teacher, the parent, and the student. The parent got onto the student about the grade showing up for my class. The student reacted. And that was about the time I almost interjected my opinion to the student. Except the triangle became a square –the teacher, the parent, the student, and my… Read More
What Can You Do That Will Endure?
Several months ago she showed me a picture of teacups, so we started gathering these for the wedding. I pulled out my grandma’s teacups from the basement; cousin Kayla filled a few boxes from the thrift shop; and my mom got on a stepladder to pull hers down from the top cabinet. Into the dishwasher they all went, on the… Read More
Here to Change the World
Okay, son, I just couldn’t do it. My lanky teenager came downstairs, and I said, “Look how much I’ve written of my blog post for tomorrow.” I had been successful in typing only the first letter of the title. He said, “This is how it’s done.” Then he turned my lap top and typed in this blog title: Hello, my… Read More