I received a gift today. It wasn't shopped for, or purchased, or even wrapped. In fact, the giver had no idea that she was giving me something of immeasurable value. A sweet little 7-year-old girl with great big eyes and a bow in her hair ran past me and jumped into the bed of her "Granny." Hugs and kisses and tickles and giggles followed. Six decades difference in age. Best friends. "This is my granddaughter!" she proudly told me, and her face lit up for the first time in the two days I'd known her. It was the most I'd seen her smile, the most joyful I'd seen her look, and for several hours it seemed as though the pain that her cancer caused her went away - just like that! It wasn't until several hours later I found out that "Granny" was not related to this ... View Post
Plastic Wrap (Cuz I couldn’t dream up any better title)
It's the season in my life when my sons' friends are all either getting married or having babies, so most of my recent Saturdays have been spent attending showers. Yesterday was the bridal shower for a childhood friend of my sons - one of the "kids down the street" kind of friends. Their house was where my kids were at when they weren't at my house. Their mom, Kathy, would call to check on her sons, or I'd call Kathy to check on mine. The boys were always in one of three places - our home, her home, or the local swimming pool. In fact, for a couple of summers the boys all worked there as lifeguards. And there were always bikes on the front lawn of one of our homes. Over the years we sat through basketball games, concerts, football games, and school performances together. Kathy ... View Post
Clean Dirt
My sons were almost 2 and 4 years old. I'd just purchased a cute little mobile home, one we'd live in and enjoy for five years. When summer came, I had a deck put on the side, and was then excited to move on to the weed pulling, and get the large corner lot we had cleaned up! I was determined to make my light blue mobile home an adorable little place for us. There was a lot of grass to cut, and so much potential for vegetables, strawberries, brightly colored flowers, and a sandbox for the kids to play in while I tended to yard duties! Loading the kids into the car, I was off to buy my flowers one Saturday morning! Purple impatiens for the front, strawberries on the side of the shed, marigolds on the side of the deck, and some brightly blooming flowers in pots for each of the ... View Post
So Long, Season!
Life is a series of seasons. That's what I've come to think... This past winter was exceptionally cold, exceptionally snowy, and miserably long. I'm not superstitious, but I'll admit I was afraid to take my shovel down to the basement for its retirement for the few shorts months we enjoy summer here in Michigan. I certainly didn't want to have to bring it back up the stairs! There have been seasons in my life too, that have seemed exceptionally cold, dark, miserable, and long. But this week, I've gone without a coat on my long walks by the lake, and have not been able to miss the tulips, the daffodils, and other perennials blooming. Nor have I been able to miss the sun shining through the windows of what seem like both sides of my home the past few mornings, and the birds ... View Post
God is Enough
Many months ago I had the privilege of meeting an elderly nun. She was just one of those people I had an instant connection with. She had taught at my high school, knew someone from my childhood, and had a heart for missions like mine. When she asked for my address to stay in touch, I never thought twice about sharing it. Soon the letters started coming. This photo above is a card made from dried banana leaves in Africa! These past 9 days I've been off and trying to catch up with those I've not been able to spend time with recently, so Sister Karen was a priority! I just had to see her. Yesterday I walked alongside Sister Karen as she took me for a tour of the grounds where she lives. We stopped at the Stations of the Cross, and she cried looking at Jesus being flogged. "He ... View Post
An Investment of TIME
I am without doubt that I accepted Jesus Christ as my Savior on a cold, rainy evening in the fall sometime in my junior year of high school in 1979. I am also very aware of the decades that followed and the lack of ANY type of fruit that would have been evidence of a saving knowledge of Christ. This is not meant to be a list of excuses. I’m able to look back over decades and see God’s protection over me. (And if anyone needed to be protected, it was me - and mostly from myself). I’ll save you a lengthy paragraph, and just sum it up by saying my life was evidence of a lack of any kind of discipleship whatsoever. And, we’ll leave it at that. But when people committed to invest in discipling others divinely crossed paths with my sons and I, everything changed. ... View Post
Stop, Turn Around, Remember
Every now and then God allows me to just stop. Today, I stopped. I stood outside with someone I had known only for five minutes, enjoyed the fresh air of what I hope was our first day of spring, and I recalled the story of how my sons came to accept Christ. Amazing. On the same day. At the same time. That, my friends, is a miracle. Maybe more often than every now and then, I need to just stop. Turn around. Remember. Looking into the future can be so scary. It’s scary for me right now. I actually spoke that out loud today on a very long drive when we saw a road sign that read, “Every saint has a past, and every sinner has a future.” Looking forward, my future has never looked so unsure. I am a little bit scared sometimes. But getting to share what God ... View Post
My Last 15
I remember the very first time I realized how much of an influence my circle of friends was, how quickly I found myself talking just like them, acting like them, even picking up some of the same mannerisms. Don't get me wrong - many of these things were good to pick up. But, many of them - maybe not so much. I even remember picking up a bit of a southern accent when I lived in the south. I'd always wished that would stick with me, but nope - I have my Michigan, like-no-other talk back. (It's NOT an accent, okay?) And that's okay with me ;) Last night I heard one of my all-time favorite preachers say that you can glance back at the last 15 text messages in your phone to get an idea of who will influence you going forward just this year. So I did what every other person ... View Post