Years ago, I was a part of Lenten Study Group that was scheduled to meet for three weeks. But the group continued to meet for more than 10 years. We read books, went on retreats, dined in one another’s homes, shared secrets, shed tears and plotted together on big projects to make Read More...
A few weeks ago in the parlor after worship, one of the little girls in church came up to me with a very quizzical look on her face. “I know that Easter is when Jesus rose and I know that Christmas is when he was born but what is Halloween?” I loved Read More...
Seated in their “regular pew,” this couple had sandwiched in between them a woman whose face I did not recognize. After the service, we shook hands in the narthex and they introduced me to their good friend. As we exchanged pleasantries I could feel something “more” was unfolding but wasn’t sure what. Read More...
On the evening of Sept. 10 I shared the Annual Report of the church at a lovely dinner gathering of church leaders. If you would like a peek, you can find it here. I’m tickled that we produce an annual report because it’s good to pause and look back and see how Read More...
Away. There is something really great about getting away. It isn’t just taking a break, but also finding some perspective, or finding a way to do life with more vigor, more grace. The away time not only refreshes but provides perspective on what is working, what isn’t and what way might bring Read More...
Why Preach, Why Listen is the title of a book I read many years ago. But the title still haunts me. Why do I preach and why do you listen? It isn’t to be “preachy,” which has become a negative word that conjures up a haranguing of sorts, where a speaker Read More...
On Sunday morning before church I visited with the police officer who supports our Sunday morning security team. I wanted to know if he was ok because he helped apprehended the shooter who took the life of a pastor’s 25 year old daughter on Friday night with a stray bullet fired into Read More...
There is a story about Leonardo da Vinci… Early in his career he was painting a picture of Christ and found a beautiful young male to model for his portrait of Jesus. Many years later, Leonardo was painting a picture that included Judas. He walked through the streets of Florence looking for Read More...
It’s as much art and luck as it is science and skill. I’ve spent 26 years both teaching it in my professional role and practicing at it in my private life and it still confounds me at times. When it works well, it feels like a holy miracle. And when it doesn’t Read More...
What if the land could talk? What if you could stand at the corner of 61st and Ward Parkway and listen to the stories that the earth witnessed? The soil could speak to us about the blood shed upon it during the Civil War. During Battle of Westport, the Confederate soldiers retreated Read More...
I had never really thought about it this way. I knew the stories but had not put them together in a pattern. But recently I read that repeatedly in the story of Jesus, the people who are closest to him erect barriers around him to keep others out. They push the children Read More...
“Who loves you Judah?” the father asked his 20 month old son as he tucked him into his crib. “G-ma, Poppy, Granny... and Ella,” Judah exclaimed with glee as he remembered the face of his six- year-old cousin Ella, whom he had met only four hours earlier that day at the family Read More...
I am on a plane to Detroit. It is time for the bi- annual Ehman family reunion. We have now swelled to 39 folks including my husband's three sisters, their spouses and all their kids and grandkids. The favorite family activities are coffee drinking and morning walks. But there will also be Read More...
It’s the time of year when folks publish lists called “Great Beach Reads.” I’ve never quite figured out what a beach read is. But I always think, if it’s not good enough to read at home, then I don’t want to waste my time on the beach reading it! However, I do Read More...
Today as I write, our high school mission team sits exhausted and exhilarated on a plane home from Ecuador. Watching their posts on Instagram and Facebook this week I was carried back to memories of my first international mission trip to Guatemala when the scales fell from my eyes and I recognized Read More...
