Every morning before I leave my home to do errands or go to doctor’s appointments, I stand in the foyer putting my coat on, and I read a poem that hung in my father’s study that now hangs in my foyer. Four words stand out: faith, love, peace, and God. Where there is faith, there is love. Where there is love, there is peace. Where there is peace, there is God. Where there is God, there is no need. Every…..
As I have often written about my faith, one of my many favorite hymns is Mine Eyes Have Seen the Glory, written by abolitionist, Julia Ward Howe, during the Civil War. Using the tune from John Brown’s Body, Julia’s words joined the Union’s cause to God’s vengeance on Judgment Day. This hymn was first published in The Atlantic Monthly in February, 1862. Although professional soloists and choirs have sung the hymn through the years, the most recent performance was done…..
I believe we are all students; we are all teachers, if we only would take the time to listen to one another. We all want to feel peace, love, and hope. We all need a place to call home, either with a special person or an actual physical place that we warmly return to every night. I also believe that the paths we take lead us to our next choices. Without our ears, we are nothing more than clanging cymbals,…..
Today is Reformation Sunday in honor of Martin Luther, founder of the German Lutheran Church. I wonder if he really understood what his 95 Theses would mean for the world and every new-born religious denomination. He was strongly against the Catholic Church’s policy that parishioners could pay indulgences to the Church to have their sins forgiven. In my upbringing, only God can forgive your sins, and no payment is necessary because that debt for my sins was paid for by…..
Being able to understand what America has done in the past, what it is doing now, and what her future will be has been an on-going discovery for me. Since there are no real endings in this world, this discovery is precious to my heart, mind, and soul. Until we are able to tell the truth about what America has done, is doing, and will do, we will not honor anyone who sacrificed for us and paid the supreme price……
My life is an endless song, above all earthly sorrows. A new creation is known through a sweet and distant hymn. Though tumult and strife, my ears hear the same beautiful tune. It echoes in my soul and makes me want to sing its good news. When my joys and comforts die, I know my Redeemer lives. As day passes into night, He gives me more music in the night. Christ’s peace refreshes my heart and is an eternal, running…..
I am an avid reader and have been since I retired from teaching. You could say I was always so busy before and could not fit interesting reading into my often hectic life. I have read many different types of books, but I decided it was time to re-visit a book I read as a ninth grade student. I must say after re-reading “Anne Frank-the Diary of a Young Girl,” I didn’t fully grasp as a ninth grader what the…..
As I was sitting in church this morning, a striking fact confronted my perception of the Christian Church today. It was Rally Day, and yet, there were few people in church. Perhaps people were staying home to watch the Packers games; some may have had children with athletic games. Still others may have gone to the car show at the park. More significantly, will the American Christian church survive into the next decade, or will it succumb to the apathy…..
It’s Labor Day weekend, and I’m thinking about how hard athletes train to run in races. Only one person wins a gold medal, which tarnishes and fades. What about those runners who don’t win but keep trying? Americans love a winner, but what about those who loose? What keeps them persevering? A wise person once said, “Tell me who or what you love and I will tell you who you are.” Many strides have been made for America’s middle and…..
Psalm 130:5-7 (KJV) states: “I wait for the Lord, my soul doth wait, and in his word do I hope. My soul waiteth for the Lord more than they that watch for the morning: I say, more than they that watch for the morning. Let Israel hope in the Lord: for with the Lord there is mercy, and with him is plenteous redemption.” When I am sad and find it difficult to find joy in the world, I turn in…..