Our Root Systems

Here is a fun fact: our California coastal redwood trees can soar to heights of well over 300 feet. And they are gorgeous! (I once went RVing near Santa Cruz in the winter. I wanted to see some of those big trees up close and personal. I almost froze to death!) What...

(Another) Bad Day

Almost eleven years ago today, I wrote a musing entitled “Bad Day.” Well, today is another one of those “bad days.” A dear friend just went home to be with Jesus. I know she is dancing around in her new body but I am struggling with deep sadness for her wonderful...

Our Heart

I have been studying the words of the Jewish “Shema” lately. In part, Deuteronomy 6:4-9 commands us to “Hear, O Israel, the Lord our God, the Lord is one. Love the Lord our God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength.” Jesus was a good...

Just Show Up

In the last few weeks, I have had personal contact with several families dealing with their precious loved ones who suffer from some sort of mental illness. For most of my life, people just did not share stories about relatives who had mental or emotional struggles....

Learning to Trust

There are lots of stories in the Bible that teach us to live by faith. Over and over again, we see examples of real people trusting God to work on their behalf. Consider Abraham as he trekked towards Mount Moriah. In obedience to God’s instructions, he planned to...

Spiritual Scaffolding

On my recent trip to Great Britain, I noticed that London was filled with huge cranes. High rise buildings were under construction everywhere! And around each of those structures was a labyrinth of steel platforms and piping. Clearly the engineers wanted to make sure...