I've invited a few people to be guest contributors on my blog. Only one of them, so far, decided to take me up on that. That would be my dad. So, you'll notice the difference in style and voice, etc. This is an excerpt from a sermon that he preached a few months ago. I…
How are you doing? Friday was Winter Solstice, the shortest and darkest day of the year and the first day of winter. It's been raining a lot here the past week or so, so even though there's a full moon up there somewhere, the clouds are so thick and the rain so persistent that I…
Christmas is next Tuesday! Are you ready? All the decorating is done, right? And the gifts are purchased and wrapped and under the tree or in the mail, right? Your Christmas cards are in the mail. The goodies are all baked and the menu is planned and dishes have been delegated. And you've considered alternative…
It's finally December! Christmas music is everywhere! Do you love it or are you counting down the days until the regular programming is back? Do you have your tree up yet? How do you like to decorate it? Do you do a theme that's the same every year or different every year? My mom and…
This is one of my favorite times of year. Not because I get all kinds of presents. That's fun. I get to give presents. I get to make presents. And people seem to be in a good mood for the season. The music is fun. The decorations are awesome. Hallmark movies are cheesy and happy…
Before you ignore this post and write it off as too legalistic or something like that, keep reading... I was pondering things, as I do, this morning. My brain likes to ponder things. And I was saying one of my morning prayers as I was getting ready to go outside to let the chickens out…
We have quite the extensive garden here on the farm. In addition to space for the vegetables, we have a large strawberry patch, a large blueberry patch, and so many fruit trees. It's wonderful. But this time of year it's a lot of work. The soil needs to be prepped for planting. Seeds are germinated…
(Trigger warning. I'm going to be talking about a story from the Bible that involves rape and abuse.) Later, there's pounding on the front door and shouting. A gang of men from the town were there and they wanted to have some "fun" with the man. The old man tried to talk them out of…
(Trigger warning. I'm going to be talking about a story from the Bible that involves rape and abuse.) There are some stories in the Bible that just make me mad--mostly when people make bad decisions. Of course, I have the perspective of time and distance and knowing the story. What really makes me mad is…
I found Emily P. Freeman on her blog "Chatting at the Sky" in 2011 or 2012. Her writing captivated me and resonated with me. Some of her posts just seemed like an echo of my heart. Since then, I've read her books and listened to her podcasts. And I'm still listening to her podcasts. I…