Where is Home? has been published in the Thrive online magazine. Click here to read it.
The Prodigal Son – A fresh look
I was challenged recently to think about the story of the Prodigal Son a little differently. I was reading the book, Misreading Scripture with Western Eyes, and the author told about asking a group of Americans to retell the story in their own words. The majority retold it without the detail of the famine. When he asked a group in … Read More
Managing Holiday Expectations
Do you tend to get more down as the holidays approach instead of happier? Do the holidays mean more stress and exhaustion in an already busy schedule? I enjoyed Christmas in Thailand, a predominantly Buddhist country. In Thailand only Christians celebrated Christmas. It wasn’t diluted by the non-Christians’ celebration of some meaningless holiday. And there wasn’t the hustle and bustle … Read More
The widow who gave all she had
Mark 12:41-44 tells the story of a widow who gave all she had to the temple treasury – just a couple small coins. Jesus applauded her generosity by giving all she had. I often wonder what happened to that woman. Did God provide for her in some way, so that she had something to eat after that? Was she poor … Read More
The Lost Art of Listening
My favorite book I read while in my psych training was “The Lost Art of Listening.” I don’t know when it was an art, but it certainly has been lost in this tweeting, posting, texting world. As we become adept at expressing ourselves in ever briefer terms, the question is – Is anyone listening? And does it matter to us … Read More
Perspective
Sometimes things can look pretty bleak from this vantage point. Wars and terrorism abound afar. Violence, abuse and apathy abound closer to home. People are out of work, kids get abused, and it seems like it gets ever more difficult just to make ends meet. But this isn’t the whole story. It’s not even the most important story. God invites … Read More
Heaven
A recent 20/20 program focused on the concept of heaven and what various religions believe about it. Barbara Walters made the comment to a Christian leader – “If indeed we do believe that our purpose is not life on earth, but to go to heaven, why struggle against death?” Why indeed?! Of all people, we Christians have so much to … Read More
Being Rooted and Grounded in Love
I have a cross stitch on my wall of the saying “Give your children two things – One is roots, the other wings.” I’ve seen people rooted in a lot of things, some not so healthy – criticism, being well behaved, perfectionism, discipline, etc. All of these can be positive in the right context, even criticism. Critiquing can be an … Read More
Foundations
As the first blog on the Care Port site, I wanted to start with a good foundation. A foundation is not only firm, it is strong enough for whatever is built on it. Here in western Washington, the Seattle Space Needle is a 605 foot tower housing a revolving restaurant that opened in 1962 for the Seattle World’s Fair. It … Read More