Two trees imitating life?

Posted on by
Reply

I’ve been working on a book chapter about Jeremiah 17:5-8, in which Jeremiah compares a cursed man to a bush in the desert who will live “in a land of salt without inhabitant” (v. 6).

Well, I had never heard of a land of salt and really couldn’t picture what that might look like, and so I googled the phrase just to see what would come up. The Bonneville Salt Flats just outside of Salt Lake City, Utah, showed up in the list of hits.

If you read through the Google hits for the Bonneville Salt Flats, you’ll see words like “nothing for miles,” “desolate,” and “barren.” Famous races happen there, by car and on foot, but – and this is mainly for my sweet husband – please don’t feel like you have to go run the 100-mile race there … ever. (Even if you could leave your salt tablets at home and still be okay.) Despite the attraction for speed junkies, there’s a whole lot of nothing to this desert land.  Continue reading →

The power of hope

Posted on by
3

Will you bear with me for one last post this season about Christmas trees? I promise it’s about more than just the tree that’s sitting out on our lawn waiting for the yard pickup tomorrow. It’s about the power of hope.

I had a hard time undecorating from Christmas this past weekend. I mean a pouting, near tears, really surprisingly difficult time. Only reluctantly did I take off the ornaments and pack them away, knowing that the tree couldn’t stay up much longer without starting to shed its needles. But for some reason, I didn’t want to let go.

There were actually several reasons. One – this tree was the quite simply the best tree we’ve ever had. We picked it out at a Christmas tree farm in the North Carolina mountains, where signs were plastered everywhere thanking us for participating in NC’s agritourism business. That was a new term for us, but we embraced it as a suitable description for marching around a hillside full of trees trying to pick the perfect one. Once we picked this one and the guys brought it down the hill for us, they called it a “fat boy.” It was really, really fat. I worried it would swallow up the room we were putting it in.  Continue reading →

Holiday wishes

Posted on by
3

I hope you won’t mind a shorter post this week, as I’m still catching up on rest after many blessings this Christmas: presents to wrap and open, many good things to eat, and a house filled to the brim with loved ones. Most especially – I found the blessing of forgiveness at our Christmas Eve service in offering a communion cup to someone who had deeply hurt me. The moment was the best gift for me this Christmas.

I wish these same things for you in the coming year – blessings that fill your home and heart to the brim, forgiveness for those who need it, and, most of all, the comfort of loved ones near you. Thank you for reading through the year. You – my blog readers – are a treasure to me.

A gift from a dear friend, a favorite “treasure” on this year’s tree

A psalm to light dark days

Posted on by
5

Since Monday, I’ve had three friends tell me they’re battling the blues, despite the joy they’re *supposed* to feel during this holiday season.

This can be a tough season. Tomorrow is the shortest day of the year (and by that, I mean the number of hours of sunlight, though for those of you with Christmas errands left to run, it may feel like a day with fewer than our usual 24 hours, too). For many of us, the lack of sunlight creeps into our bones and seeps into our hearts and our minds, and the dark tries to set up shop for the winter. Christmas is also a difficult time for those who have lost a loved one or become estranged from a family member or a close friend. For those sitting next to a hospital bed, or otherwise waiting with an ill loved one, the merriment and twinkling lights of the season can seem empty and even annoying.

If you find yourself sitting in a dark place, might I offer you a psalm of light and hope? It’s a psalm a pastor friend of mine, Matt Ashburn, preached about a couple of weeks ago in a sermon titled “Needing Sonshine.” This psalm is not one you normally think of as a Christmas psalm. But I think it’s perfect for those struggling with the dark, perfect for looking toward the Light promised at Christmas.  Continue reading →

The Christmas tree psalm

Posted on by
Reply

^
< * >
v
The
LORD is
my shepherd,
I shall not want.
He makes me lie down
in green pastures; He leads
me beside still waters. He restores
my soul; He guides me in the paths
of righteousness for His name’s sake.
Even though I walk through the valley of
the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for
You are with me; Your rod and Your staff, they
comfort me. You prepare a table before me in the
presence of my enemies; You have anointed my head
with oil; my cup overflows. Surely goodness and mercy
will follow me all the days of my life, and I will dwell in the
house
of the
LORD
forever.
Psalm 23

‘Tis the season to feel stressed out, to feel that Time cares little whether we have crossed off our to-do items for the day and definitely won’t slow down to let us catch up. We can’t tackle Time and make him give us more hours in each day. So instead, what if we focus on what we can change: our mindset.  Continue reading →