Learning
Growth
Unity
Teams Within the Team
We recently got back from Virginia and a family reunion with Claudia’s clan. It was a great time in the high heat and humidity spiced with laughter and much too much comfort food, like mounds of sugared bacon (so good you want to rub it in your hair).
The Big Leagues and the Apocrypha
I grew up in awe of Major League baseball players, and to me they were like gods. They weren’t just bigger, stronger and faster than everyone else. Big-leaguers had an aura of boy-like charm and confidence, and they performed nothing less than magic on the baseball field. It’s sinful idolatry, I know, but what I’m getting at is that I perceived them to be a completely different and better category of human beings.
It’s Later Than You Think
We sat in comfortable silence. With my longtime friend, the shade and light breeze felt just right on a hot afternoon. Neither of us were in a hurry and our conversation wandered like a pleasant stream. We talked of past adventures and future hopes, of opportunities missed and chances taken.
Choices
A Challenge and Three Tests
Last week’s blog looked at the swing of events from the Yahoo! of Jesus’ baptism to the then of his time of testing in the desert, culminating in the duel with the devil. I used the space as a parallel to our life: We are right with God, but still often kicked around the playground by trials. Lessons in the flesh from Jesus’ experiences have a way of ricocheting relevantly in any of his follower’s mind and heart.
What Are Your Markers of Success?
What are your markers of success?
Success used to look like getting as many items checked off my to-do list as possible in a day. The more I accomplished, the more successful I was, right? And maybe even the more worthy I was, or so I thought.
Two Little Words
For me, Tim Keller might just be the GOAT of modern-day pastor-teachers and authors. Gone too soon, but still impacting many, Tim’s insights and reflections on scripture provide a master class in a faith life lived well.
Peace, Pray, and Work
For 15 centuries the Benedictine monks have followed an “order” that regulates life, provides a framework on which to build, and which sets standards to emulate. After all that time, most in the order still basically hold to the original ideals orbiting around the motto, “Peace, pray and work.”
Wally the Peach
Three dozen of us sorted into vans on a cool July morning in Bend like fresh-picked peaches heading to market. Half a day later, we arrived at Gleanings for the Hungry, a YWAM mission in Dinuba, CA, set amidst endless groves of fruit trees in the San Juaquin Valley, under a sweltering sun that clocks in early and works hard all day.
The Man in the Hat
Not more than a year ago, while I worked the floor at the Habitat ReStore, a guy came in wearing an outfit that stopped me in my tracks.
When We Awake to Astonishment
Probably the most astonishing sight I’ve seen lately is video of my husband hanging out with sharks.
We spent eight days on an archipelago of 330 islands that make up the country of Fiji. Dan is scuba diving as I sit in our private yard with the “Beware: Coconuts Falling” sign on the largest palm tree, and the hammock and the blue sea beyond.
Jenga or J. Vernon
Remember the first time you played Jenga? It looked so simple, the stack of blocks and all you had to do was slide out one at a time, alternating with whomever you played against.
But as the game progressed and the stack teetered, anxiety replaced calm and your fingers seemed not able to be still…until the whole thing tumbled with you still holding the last piece you were trying to remove.
Rocks in a Backpack
The Other Night…
The other night we had a few friends over for dinner. It was a fun evening eating take-out BBQ and enjoying each other’s company. We stuffed ourselves, laughed, did some competitive Spam carving and had lively discussions around a few hot topics.
When It’s Only a Human-sized Effort
You may have heard the story of the elderly man who was shuffling along a beach with an unusual amount of stranded starfish. In the distance, he noticed a young boy picking up starfish and pitching them back into the sea.
When the lad got within hearing distance, the old man called out, “What are you doing?”
When Rage Looks Like a Good Option
A couple of Saturdays ago was a busy one in Bend. We attended Chris Friess’ memorial service (a very good man remembered well), and after changing clothes I rode the bike down to Drake Park for the No Kings protest and march, and at the same time the downtown bike criterium was running hard on the streets, and Styx was warming up at the amphitheater. Oh, yes, also there was a triathlon finishing up at River Bend Park, and half of the West Coast was visiting our town.
Memorials, Mementos, and Memories
It’s funny how our minds work. The other day I heard a song that evoked a memory of riding in a friend’s car, which led to memories of his first sermon on a mission trip, which led to memories of a starlit Mexican sky, and so on. Memories are like a locked room, and sometimes we find a little key—a song, a smell, a memento—that opens the door.
Here Comes the Diesel
The past couple of weeks, Team Immatour has been on a little bike trip, which is the reason for two Tuesdays without my scribbles. This team is a group of friends who ride together most every summer and were given their name by Francie’s dad while staying with them on a trip through Montana a few years ago. This summer we started in Durango and made our way south and east to Taos, around the Enchanted Circle, then back a different route to our rigs left where we started.
Why Are You Here?
It was midnight and I was hitchhiking home to California on Interstate-5. A trucker stopped to pick me up. A trucker with a daughter my age. On the drive south, he said he’d take me all the way to the California bay area, but he encouraged me to return to school.
When Anxiety Muscles Its Way In
I’m not a worrier by nature. During my widow years, it was normal to drive to a wilderness trailhead, text a friend to let her know where I was, and then call her when I returned to my car. Looking back, it would have been a good idea to have a healthy fear about hiking alone in the wilderness.