Sitting Still

“Alone Together.” I’d never heard the phrase before. But it’s now become part of my vocabulary. May I share how it came about?

Some days my Bible reading is so clear, the only right answer is a simple, "Here am I. Send me." Today is one of those days. If you're like me, even with that kind of clarity, a bit of squirming sometimes happens first. Please join me in this little reality-check on intentions.

I was just on a simple search for a new calendar. Little did I know the next day God was going to use my Twenty-Twenty calendar to show me a new way to share the practical love He calls us to live on this faith journey with Him.

Today as I sat between my Christmas tree and my small manger scene, candles flickered, and my soul hungered to witness His majesty in a new way. I paused to slightly turn the manger scene so I could look directly inside. Worshipping the King of Kings feels familiar. But worshipping a Baby -- well, unusual for me. In my mind’s eye, Jesus is always grown up. This moment took me to a different place.

A dozen years ago my first grandchild crawled across the room to the touchable images in the manger scene with “Oh, Come Let Us Adore Him” playing the background. He pulled himself up to the end table and reached out for the Baby Jesus. Silent tears filled the eyes around the room. As I sat beside that same simple manger scene today, thinking about its present and eternal meaning, I’m still compelled to respond -- in some way.

Recently I picked up a special edition TIME magazine as I entered the airport: 100 Photographs - The Most Influential Images of All Time. Each page had a famous photo and the narrative about its backstory. You’d probably recognize most of them, like the 1932 “Lunch Atop a Skyscraper.” Eleven men are eating lunch and smoking on a narrow beam 840 feet above Manhattan. The iconic photograph became a symbol of Depression-era Americans’ desperate need for ambition and resilience. The backstory gives...

I’m visiting my son and family in Placerville, California. Their church, Green Valley, approaches the community in ways I’ve never seen. They start by asking people what they need. In my experience most churches tell people what they need -- Jesus --and then try convincing them. At Green Valley, they love first and talk later.

Is any holiday better named than Thanksgiving: the giving of thanks flipped backwards and capitalized? Love it. To many this day is full of family, friends and favorite foods. For others it is a day of pain.

Is it possible to recommend a book after just two pages of reading? Apparently so. I’m always on the search for my favorite authors’ books on sale. Because, well, I love to share them. I love holding real books, bending the corners, writing in the margins. I’m also an admitted fan of brick and mortar bookstores. I live two minutes away from two great stores in Eugene, so I visit regularly: I really, really want them to survive. On a recent field trip, I bumped into a new book by my friend/au...

Have you ever made a berry pie that turned out to be a berry cobbler because, well, “renaming” felt kinder than “failure”? My strong and confident Mom taught me that kitchen trick. I once attempted to write a book but it evolved into something far different, and better, than I could have imagined at the time.