The scent of orange blossom surrounds me as I sit on my patio. The flowers have suddenly burst into bloom throughout the neighborhood and their fragrance permeates everywhere. The beautiful white flowers turn into fruit, which, in a few months, will add nutrition and goodness to my meals. Curiously, there are still healthy fruit maturing from last season…
Read more
Ash
Our culture hides death. I’m not sure why. Maybe we’re uncomfortable with expressing the pain or facing our own mortality. Or maybe it simply forces us to recognize we’re not in control. But this season gives us a stark reminder with every ash-marked forehead. Ash is a picture of our mortality, our physical destination. Cultures going…
Read more
Slow to leave
And endurance produces character, and character produces hope… Romans 5:4 A few years ago, I experienced a difficult and restless season. I seesawed between questioning God’s personal involvement in my life and bemoaning my own mistakes and inadequacy. Some may call it a mid-life crisis, but it felt deep and painful. It was very unsettling…
Read more
All the World’s a Stage
The art of storytelling has been here since the beginning. In fact, God frequently uses story to impart His Truth. Every good teacher knows the value of a story and even Jesus used parables to teach a lesson. As the art of theater developed, story was told for a purpose, initially to honor the god…
Read more