Blog
My challenge: Learning to walk through the valley of in-between
I’m engaged with Evelyn every day in one way or another. And yet in many ways, I’m living my life without her. It’s a surreal valley, and I’m trying not to stumble.
Christmas Is for You: Joyful, patient, faithful—he was all three
Joyful, patient, and faithful: Three qualities and an aged saint who had them all.
A ‘Christmas Card’ to help me deal with the paradox inside me
My interactions with others give me energy. My tears provide release. I’ve decided it’s a healthy combination.
Christmas Is for You: These two learned about God and his promises
Their remarkable story gives us faith that God’s promises are for us, too!
Facing the holidays, reflecting on the year we decided to go public
Three years ago, when we first announced our situation, I wouldn’t have dreamed what it would look like today.
Christmas Is for You: The promise it offers is for caregivers, too
His coming offers the promise of hope to everyone who will obey him, even those who feel Christmas is for someone else.
Of all my many reasons to be thankful, these people top the list
This Thanksgiving I’m choosing to concentrate on the people—so many people—encouraging me on every step of the journey.
Embracing Lament: We’re not too old for what all of us need most: hope
More than those in any generation, in spite of our unexpected burdens, we should have hope. All our experience with God tells us he will win in the end.
‘She’s still in there.’ We love it. But we miss everything lost
A visit with old friends was wonderful. But it pointed out to me the diabolical dilemma of loving someone with Alzheimer’s. She’s there, but in many ways she’s gone.
Embracing Lament: The changes come slowly, so the lament comes daily
Morning by morning we remember our needs and repeat our prayers. With the psalmist, we go to God because only he can help.
Grief. Guilt. Mourning. I’m showing the symptoms, and that’s OK
I needed a friend to help me cope with my guilt about what I was feeling.
Embracing Lament: God is author of the joy we may find in silence
“Fill my heart with joy,” the psalmist prayed. He knew the only source for the surest way to find what he needed most.
‘Nothing new’ is good enough. In fact, I’ve decided it’s very good
‘Nothing new’ is my report for the week, and I’m quite happy to write about it.
Embracing Lament: Naming our enemies, then calling on God to conquer
Fight my enemies? A second thought may help us see how relevant this psalm is for our personal situation.
Let me see people alone at Panera today when I stop for a snack
Let me be glad about how I have shown
my resilience
at coping in ways I’d not known.
Embracing Lament: The matter to address before anything else
Before we take our laments to God, we need to give him ourselves.
Getting better, slowly better, at knowing when things should end
As we’re forced to face one finish line after another, I have no choice but to get better at it.
Embracing Lament: We can be good news to others who are suffering
The psalm follows a familiar pattern: lament followed by praise. But then it shows us something more: Include others in our laments.
A challenge for readers: Choose a word to describe my weekend
Two sets of experiences, two adjectives, and one helpful conclusion.
Embracing Lament: We can be sure Jesus understands how we feel
"My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?" What we have experienced, Jesus has said.