After my second year of teaching, I went to Germany for one school year to teach. As a young American in a small town, I found myself most often on the same schedule of retirees. We would eat our kuchen and kaffee at the same time in the afternoon and then go see a lecture …
This past Sunday was March 13….again. Two years ago as we gathered for worship in our sanctuary, we lamented and prayed. A global pandemic was sweeping across the world and we still didn’t know how we could stop it. We ended worship with a tearful benediction that God would protect us until we were able …
As I went to write my weekly reflection in my planner, I flipped back to the month view wondering whether I had ever filled out February. It has been a busy week and February is such a short month, I didn’t want to forget to look ahead. As I flipped back, I realized not only …
There is a viral Tik Tok video going around asking former employees to reveal secrets they had to protect about businesses after they left that business. I was drawn in to the insider information and then I started to wonder why is that there are so many secrets that have to be protected. For many …
O Soul, are you weary and troubled? No light in the darkness you see? There’s light for a look at the Savior and life more abundant and free. Turn Your Eyes Upon Jesus This hymn has been going nonstop in my mind this week because I am weary. And I know you are too. There’s …
In times of uncertainty and extreme stress, our heart rate increases. It’s a natural, biological response to the increased stess we are experiencing. Although it’s natural, it isn’t something we often notice or ask each other. Instead when we check on each other, we ask “How are you?” eliciting a response from our brains rather …
This week our congregation worshipped virtually for the first time six months. Even though we knew it was the right decision based on the positivity rate for our county, it was a difficult decision to make. The rolling isolations and quarantines remind us that we aren’t where we hoped to be. We hoped to be …
Last year during Advent, I released my first book called Morning Light and what I discovered was when you send the light out, light returns to you. My favorite reminder of this was the candles I received. These candles have anchored this past year reminding me that when we open ourselves to finding the light, …
Early this week, I recounted running out of gas for the first time in my life. What I didn’t explain was that it’s not surprising it happened. I run on fumes quite often. I push past the lit-up E trying to tell me to stop and take time to refuel. I push my engine to …
In Katherine May’s beautiful book Wintering, she describes the process of preparing for a physical winter saying: I have spent most of my life trying to push winter away, having rarely had to truly feel its bite. She is speaking of the physical season but continues to elaborate that most of us do not like …
