Come and see what God has done. That invitation, to witness the mighty works of the Lord, echoes down to us throughout history. We’re offered that invitation in every incident recorded in Scripture. Come and see. See how He made a people for Himself, see how He cares for His people. See how He preserved…
Author: Hannah
A Different Take on Joy
“Secular Christmas, with its enthusiastic sparkles, dumps us into the cold gray of January. Christian joy is much weightier, more durable”.* Whew. Fitting indeed is the Lord’s timing, governing just precisely which day and at which time on that day I would read that particular entry in the Advent book I chose – almost on…
Recent Reads, Volume XIX
A brief summary of what I’m currently reading or have recently finished, why I read it, and whether I’d recommend it. Although really, it’d have to be truly terrible for me to bother writing about a book I wouldn’t recommend…… Two Gardeners: A Friendship in Letters (Katharine S. White & Elizabeth Lawrence) – I’m not…
Advent’s Longing
As we’ve turned the corner after Thanksgiving and are careening towards Christmas and the beginning of the new year, I wanted to take some time to think through the longing of Advent as specifically seen and expressed in “O Come O Come Emmanuel” (which is arguably the best traditional Christmas song that exists). In our…
The Heritage of Those Who Fear Your Name
There are certain passages of Scripture that never fail to bring to mind particular individuals. Psalm 94:19 always reminds me of an older woman who shared with me how precious that verse became to her after the tragic death of her granddaughter. When I read Psalm 40, I think of a teenager at church, who…
Another Round of the Holidays
It’s getting to be that time again, the one known to many not so much as “the most wonderful time of the year”, but rather “the most stressful time of the year”. The 5 weeks or so stretching from Thanksgiving through to the first of the new year can be some of the most challenging…
Held Fast by a Holdfast
Last week I drew a bit of inspiration from a current read, essentially a guidebook on the animals found between the tide lines on the Pacific coast. I’m revisiting that same book, Ed Ricketts’ Between Pacific Tides today, on a slightly different topic. A couple of days ago, I began the section on open rocky…
Shame
We humans are like hermit crabs sometimes. (Never dreamed I’d ever think that thought, let alone write it in a public venue, but I also didn’t expect to make any connections between a 1930s guidebook on the inhabitants of Pacific tidelines and Fernando Ortega songs, and here we are. Comment here or send me an…
A Light in Dark Places
One of the pleasures – yes, I said it: pleasures – of a lengthy daily commute is the opportunity to listen to audiobooks without spending weeks on each one. Sure, I probably could read with eyes faster than I listen, but the drive is time that I wouldn’t have spent reading with my eyes anyway…
Visualization
Recently I listened to an interview1 with a beach volleyball player and Olympic gold medalist Alix Klineman. I was plugging along at work, giving the interview really just half my attention – if even that much – until she described being down in the middle of her first qualifying match for a tournament as a…