One of our memorable Christmas pageants had the junior Sunday School playing the parts of the Biblical characters. Mary and Joseph, with their ceramic doll Jesus, sat quietly and almost beatifically until the arrival of the bathrobed magi. Then as … Read more
Most of us have, or have had a wonderful, warm comforter. Something to snuggle in on cold winter nights. A "friend" to wrap around our weary bones which ache with arthritis, or call out for comfort when we have a … Read more
Last fall, I went through what some would call a "bad patch". A bad patch is an experience that comes at the wrong time, just like when one is driving through a bad patch, it causes sluggishness to one's wheels. … Read more
One of the sheer delights of taking a "nature walk" on these West Coast Islands, comes in seeing plants and flowers flourishing in places in which they are not indigenous. The birds "planted" the seeds. Oh, I'm sure it occurs … Read more
John Westerhoff was invited to Northern Ireland to lead a spiritual retreat on reconciliation with a mixed group of Catholics and Protestants, young and old. He was feeling like a failure as the week slipped by and old animosities seemed … Read more
I've always thought of today's verse in much the same terms as throwing a bottle with a message in it into the ocean, to see if and where someone would find it. And there's a spiritual analogy to that. Because … Read more
When I am reminded of these verses about the tongue, I am reminded of the children's story with a tube of toothpaste. The children are asked to squeeze the toothpaste out of the tube which they usually do with much … Read more
Thirteen of us from our volunteer group had been looking forward to attending a workshop with great anticipation. This was going to be such a great experience. This one was going to offer us new tools, more answers, enable us … Read more
On January 1, 1998, I made a New Year's resolution. Normally I try to avoid resolutions because I believe they set me up for failure. It's so hard to start new things in the dark cold winter. Yet, each year … Read more