Whatsoever Things
on Dec 31, 2008 in Bible Revelation I want to live in the moment, but I fret about the future. I want to look to the future, yet I rehash the past. But what are we to dwell on? We are to dwell on the things of God, the "things" of Philippians 4:8.Before I enter the New Year, I wil

The Repairman Has Arrived
on Dec 29, 2008 in Waiting Christmas In a wooden pew, in the church where I grew up, I breathed in deeply the truth of Christmas: The wait is over.I feel that relief every year on Christmas Eve. You know the feeling: the joy-filled anticipation that began back when the first Advent cand...

Love Came Down
on Dec 24, 2008 in Bible Beauty Revealed Christmas A portion of Luke 2 (from The Message)About that time Caesar Augustus ordered a census to be taken throughout the Empire. This was the first census when Quirinius was governor of Syria.Everyone had to travel to his own ancestral hometown to be accoun...

What I Learned From ...
on Dec 23, 2008 in Keepin' it Real Blogging Blogging can feel a tad scary at times.I mean, let's face it. It's like journaling out loud. Like opening up your diary to strangers -- or scarier still -- blood relatives. In Blogger-ville, if we're Keepin' It Real, we're letting

It's a Wrap
on Dec 21, 2008 in Good Things Giving Wrapping Christmas presents has become something of an art at our house. Not because I use fancy paper or tie handmade bows.Rather, the art is in The Disguise.You were a kid once. You know what I mean. Admit it: You searched for your name on the tag,...

All I Want for Christmas Is ...
on Dec 18, 2008 in Hope Family Christmas I thought I'd like a new digital camera, a Nicole C. Mullen CD, or maybe one of those tall jewelry armoires.I would have been delighted to unwrap a new pair of jammies or some vanilla-scented bubble bath.But right now, I just want one thing for Chris

The Repairman
on Dec 16, 2008 in Leading by Example Humility I wish you could meet my friend, Dave.He's the pastor at the Methodist church in the little Iowa town where I grew up -- the church where I was baptized, confirmed, took my first communion. He's the pastor who baptized our daughter, Lydia, when