Category: Meditation
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The Gift of Darkness
“Even in the darkest darkness, hope was a lifeline, though sometimes as thin as a thread.” – Dean Koontz, The Silent Corner, pg. 85 Eighteen years ago today, I quit smoking cigarettes. Only nine months prior to that, I had my last drink of alcohol and surrendered my food addiction to God. Reflecting on all…
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Moral Rebuilding
“We speak much more of moral rebuilding, without which nothing can happen, and know that such cannot come about unless each of us begins with his own personal moral building.” – Dietrich Bonhoeffer, in a sermon reflecting on Psalm 127 (May 20, 1926) Lately, there have been many statements made on social media and within…
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The Gift of the Honeysuckle
This past weekend offered many opportunities for outdoor journeys. On Friday afternoon, I enjoyed traveling along my summertime walk route that involves long stretches of country roads, and quiet places that offer the potential for deer sightings along the way. On Saturday afternoon, my husband and I went for a leisurely ride on the Harley,…
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Calming the Storm
He said to his disciples, “Why are you so afraid? Do you still have no faith?” – Mark 4:40 (NIV) With a storm raging around their boat, the disciples of Jesus became terrified and roused him from sleep. Prior to boarding the boat, the disciples had seen Jesus heal several people, exorcise unclean spirits from…
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These are the days…
“These are the days that must happen to you…” – Walt Whitman When I entered college 30 years ago this fall, I quickly became a Walt Whitman groupie. I thought that his poetry spoke to me in a way that nothing ever spoke to me before. I could recite a lot of it, and often…
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What Do I Treasure?
“For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.” – Matthew 6:21 (NIV) “I absolutely LOVE my car!” “I just LOVE that movie!” I have said these things, and many more like them. But, do I really mean them? Do I really LOVE my car? A movie? Maybe I need to think about…
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Laughter
“Laughter separates us from despair and gives us a chance at love.” – Craig Ferguson When is the last time you laughed? I mean, really laughed – belly-laughed until your cheeks hurt from smiling and you were wiping tears of joy from your eyes? If you can’t remember, it has been too long! Laughter brings…
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“Agape” Love
When Jesus saw his mother there, and the disciple whom he loved standing nearby, he said to her, “Woman, here is your son,” and to the disciple, “Here is your mother.” From that time on, this disciple took her into his home. – John 19:26-27 (NIV) This passage from the Gospel of John speaks volumes…
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Together
“If you descend into somebody else’s private hell and stand there with them, it ceases to be hell.” – Father Mychal Judge From the day of my very first recovery meeting, one of the things that has attracted me to people I have met in those circles was the fact that they have simply listened…
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Is It Love?
“Love builds up, it strengthens and affirms, and it never loses sight of another person’s dignity.” – Paul J. Wadell (Happiness & the Christian Moral Life, pg. 227) After reading this sentence, I stopped and wondered how often the term “love” is used incorrectly in today’s world. In my Christian Ethics class this past semester,…