Last week, we were all in awe as we saw images of a new planet being born: PDS 70, the new baby in the solar system. It was incredible to see the world focused on our God, still at work on His world, creatively honing and adding, when often all we see are the things taken away. And I celebrate … [Read more...] about Absence with a Presence
blessing
Absence with a Purpose
Letting go of kids exposes a raw place in my soul, and an unyielding lump in my throat. I cried every time they started a new phase of life: preschool, kindergarten, high school, college, marriage. Something inside a parent dies a little every time a child crosses another threshold. And yet, … [Read more...] about Absence with a Purpose
A Surprise Party
I don’t like surprises. I like to pick out my own gifts, plan my pregnancies, and I despise surprise parties if they’re for me. I am a control freak at heart, and I am in recovery from that more than any health issue I have. Somehow that tendency lends itself to doubting the God who loves … [Read more...] about A Surprise Party
Widening the Margin
It is critical in life to maintain margin. I have been a poor ambassador for this concept most of my life. I have filled every page to the maximum space and word count. I have loaded every minute and every day with whatever I personally deemed most worthy. And in the process I have lost focus, I … [Read more...] about Widening the Margin
Tonight, We Wrestle
My husband has had a tradition of “wrestling” with our kids since they were little. He was a wrestler in high school (still owns those pants), and he taught them the holds and rules. So ever since they were four or five, our kids would wrestle with my husband before bedtime (sort of counter-acted … [Read more...] about Tonight, We Wrestle
Searching for Blessings
For as long as I can remember, I have been obsessed with looking for things. Even as a preschool child, I could not sleep until I found my toy or doll, or whatever item I had left behind in my childish carelessness. As an adult, I still have to search for something exhaustively. Truth is, I’m … [Read more...] about Searching for Blessings