Imagine this. You are hiking in the White Mountains. The sun is shining, the birds are singing, but evening is coming on. You head home for the day and decide to take a short cut down the mountainside. As you push through the underbrush, sure of your direction, you notice that the air is chilling and … Read more
Scientific studies on humor have concluded that we laugh because of a primitive evolutionary throwback to a former time. A more intriguing explanation might be that we laugh at the absurdity of things. Someone falls down in a crowd; a breathless silence follows. Nervous titters can be heard as the embarrassed stumbler picks himself up off … Read more
What does the Apostle Paul mean when he tells us to “walk in the Spirit?”Is it some otherworldly experience in which a believer gets a strange look in his eye and wanders around spouting scripture or quoting from the latest and greatest Christian self-help book? Does it happen only in church? Or is it something … Read more
It’s a sticky feeling of dread. It’s embarrassing. I’m nine years old, old enough to spend the night with a friend, too old to be homesick. We spent the length of this perfect July day at Totem Beach where Andrea and her family live in the summertime. You don’t want to waste these cloudless and sweetly … Read more
Nostalgia is powerful. It can wash over us in an unguarded moment, taking us by surprise. Oh, if only we could turn the clock back and catch up with people who loved us. If only we could be transported back into the world as we remember it. But here’s the thing. What do you find … Read more
Today I serendipitously landed in a downtown Phoenix theater, watching a matinee dance performance of “A New Beginning”, choreographed by Francis Smith Cohen. Little did I know that she was sitting right next to me, although I did notice that this woman was taking copious notes as the dancers wove their patterns on the stage. … Read more
There is an old line in a hymn that goes like this: “Let those refuse to singWho never knew our GodBut children of the heavenly KingMay speak their joys abroad. To our ears, it sounds old fashioned. But think about it. Who refuses to sing in our day? I could name a few: Richard Dawkins, … Read more
Oh, really? How’s that working for you? If you worship what you can understand, all you get back is yourself. Turn inward and make yourself the center of your universe. “It’s all about me” leads ultimately to despair. Feel the nagging emptiness? We were not created to be autonomous. We are not enough for ourselves. We long for … Read more
As I opened my eyes early this morning and peered out the window, I noticed something white and feathery floating down. Must be apple blossoms, I thought. But no! A snowstorm in May? It was true. Novembery winds tossed the huge snowflakes around. Down they fell, coating the daffodils and blooming trees in white. Silly … Read more
Today an unpleasant task reared its ugly head. I was called upon to tackle a tedious number of phone calls and web interactions with several businesses, and I braced myself for recorded voices, long waits, and officious personalities. And sure enough, that’s how it started off. But I began to think about Jesus and how … Read more