I’ve always wanted a library, a room filled with built-in bookshelves rather than freestanding bookcases–a room intended for books. If I ever got one, I knew, it would be a luxury. After all, who really needs a room devoted to housing books? For that matter, who needs enough books to fill a whole room? It was…
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 leads me in 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,…
May is my favorite month. I gaze out the kitchen window at the brilliant pink crabapple trees standing over blushing tulips. Lilacs come into the house in bunches. Bikes come out for long rides, during which we smell morning rain over the forest preserve prairie. Sound carefree? Don’t let it fool you. This kind of…
Like birds on a wire, but with our legs dangling beneath us, we sat side by side atop the blue-and-yellow monkey bars and giggled over things I no longer remember. It’s likely the conversation included music or movies or our annoying siblings. The important thing is, we enjoyed that time between the ringing recess bells…
If you come from an unchurched or even an evangelical background, the notion of liturgy may be foreign to you. It was to me throughout most of my childhood and young adulthood. And for many years, I thought liturgy was a negative thing until I realized that God is all about liturgy when that liturgy is…
When I look at the friendships I’ve had over the course of forty-plus years, I’m overwhelmed with gratitude. Not because I’ve had an abundance of friendships, but because my friendships have made my life richer and challenged me to be who I am today. An old saying notes three kinds of friendships: Friends for a…