Pat Bell

Several times a day, I reach for a pair of reading glasses. I keep five pairs handy in different places where I am likely to want to thread a needle or read fine print. The lenses in my reading glasses … Read more

If you were to find the photographs of kids and grandkids in my purse, you would also turn up an old postcard. Originally, it came inviting me to attend the ordination service of a student minister friend. The picture side … Read more

I have noticed over the years, as I used this Scripture to bring myself still, that sometimes I would become attentive to my breathing. During one of those times in meditation, I remembered this verse: Four years ago, I began … Read more

When I try to imagine what the shepherds witnessed, the best description I can muster seems totally inadequate: an awe-inspiring light show, an angelic proclamation, and a chorus of the army of heaven praising God and invoking His peace. What … Read more

The book, A Shepherd Looks at Psalm 23, indicates that one way a shepherd tends sheep is to place pesticide on the animals to prevent parasites and insects. Sheep may worry to death or experience disease from such sources. W. … Read more

Two ideas found at different times while reading have helped me to understand and use the peace that Christ Jesus left for me as an inheritance. I read the account of a Bible translator who came to a roadblock in … Read more

Fireflies showed up around here in mid-June. A friend from Texas calls them lightning bugs. The insects possess light-emitting organs. The nocturnal winged adult beetles emit a soft intermittent light from the abdomen to aid in mate selection. The larval … Read more

In the quiet of the morning, while my husband and I were out walking the dog, we heard a crow call in distress several times. Off in the eastern sky, we could see two birds in flight, one giving chase … Read more

In 1996, I became so ill that eventually I had Red Cross homemaker service and used a wheelchair. Slow death was my future. In desperation, I asked people of the church to pray for me. My husband prayed. Today, at … Read more

Almost thirty years ago, I began a journey, seeking to understand and express the fruit of the Holy Spirit. It began with memorizing the list: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. At the time, I felt … Read more