Tag Archives: grace

An alternative to going dark

Posted on by
6

Friday brings a change to the White House, a power shift in Washington. I hope—whether you’ll be commiserating with family and friends, celebrating, or marching in protest—that you’ll take a few moments first to ponder darkness and light, contempt and compassion, condemnation and grace.

I’ve seen buzz growing around the idea of going dark on Facebook this Friday by posting a completely black rectangle where your cover photo would normally be. I confess the idea has some appeal to me, but I also know I have to carefully guard my own soul and heart and mind from settling in with dark thoughts and fears.

Church this past Sunday offered a scripture reading that reminded me of an essential truth to cling to in the days and weeks and months ahead. God calls each of us to reflect God’s light to others:

prayersatmissionsanjose2013_ft

I will also make You a light of the nations, that My salvation may reach to the end of the earth. — Isaiah 49:6

Continue reading →

Thankful for trees and books and a book about trees

Posted on by
4

I’ve got exciting news this Thanksgiving Eve! My book The Flourishing Tree is available for purchase.

FT_COVER-finalforhsc

Available now at Lulu.com

It will be available only through Lulu until sometime early in the new year, when it will be widely available (Barnes & Noble, Amazon, etc.). For those of you who prefer electronics to paper, you may purchase the eBook through Lulu, too. To celebrate the Thanksgiving holiday, the eBook is on sale for $3.99 through Monday (it’s regularly $8.99). The paperback version is on sale for 20% off.

Thank you for your support
How many of you remember the Bartles & Jaymes commercials from many years ago? You know, the ones with the two old guys who always ended by saying “Thank you for your support.” Well, let me quote them here: “Thank you for your support.” Those of you who follow this blog have encouraged me and lifted me up and helped me get here today. I am deeply grateful for you.

If you like the book, would you do me another favor? Would you rate it on Lulu? Would you leave some feedback for me here? Or at hopesquires.com? I’d love to hear how this book touches you.

My hope for the book
I hope those of you who read the book will walk away with a renewed sense of God’s unfailing love and grace for you. I hope you’ll be encouraged in your faith journey. I hope you will experience a new (or renewed) excitement for pursuing a relationship with God. And I hope the book will fill you with God’s light.

Together, you and I can be bearers of the light. We live in a broken world, and it is easy to feel overcome by the strife and despair and sorrow and violence in this world. Yesterday morning, the morning after Ferguson erupted in fresh riots, I was out running with my dog. Two chickadees dropped to the road from a high limb of a tree, hitting the pavement with a loud “thwack.” I thought they might be babies falling from a nest, but they were full-grown and in full fight mode. Their battle made me despair, “If even the birds are at war with one another, what hope is there for humans to heal their differences?”

Yet God calls us to let our light shine and to love one another. In the days to come, may you find moments that heal the broken places inside of you, and may you encounter ways both tender and loud that shine through with the light of God’s love for us all.

Happy Thanksgiving, y’all. I hope your travels will be safe and cheerful. I hope you find yourself in the company of those you love. I hope your bellies and your hearts will be filled with all good things.