Perfection

August 6, 2010

8/5/10:  In my Lectio Divina group today, we read Hebrews 10:14 – “By virtue of that one single offering, He has achieved the eternal perfection of all whom He is sanctifying.”  Eternal perfection. My response was an incredulous, “Even me?”  After all these years, knowing my continuing imperfection, I still struggle to believe – really [...]

Saints

August 6, 2010

8/5/10:  Saints.  One of those subjects that make for contention among the major branches of Christendom.  As an Anglo-Catholic with distinctly Protestant roots, I am right there at the place where the trunk of catholic (universal) Christianity divides into Catholic and Protestant; and that leaves me with an internal debate on the subject of saints. [...]

Memories

August 6, 2010

8/2/10:  We went the other day to look at our old house.  It was a place where we made delightful memories, but now it is greatly changed.  Other people have been there, and made their own memories, not so good, and the place seems dark and despondent.  But here and there evidence of us remains [...]

America

July 5, 2010

America!  America!  God shed His grace on thee!  And He has, for decade after decade, through times of shame and times of heroism.  He is with us, and He won’t let go!  He told me so!

Love

July 5, 2010

I have an assignment to write a short story themed on “love.”  What a huge topic!  How can I say anything new about it?  How can I come up with a story that is not smarmy and trite?  The more I think about it, the more it seems to me that everything is love – [...]

Solitude

June 4, 2010

Loneliness is part of the human condition.  There is an intense loneliness that we all feel at times, and that, counter-intuitively, can only be remedied by solitude.  It seems we can become so attuned to external stimuli that we lose contact with our own selves, and it is our own self for whom we are [...]

Puzzle Pieces

June 4, 2010

It is to me a marvel, the way seemingly disparate sources give us puzzle pieces that fit together into a unified whole.  I seem to be developing a whole cosmology (or is the Spirit teaching me?) out of bits of various readings. Awhile back, in N.T. Wright’s Simply Christian and Surprised by Hope, I found [...]

Skunks and Such

May 12, 2010

Driving over to church today, we passed a dead skunk by the side of the road.  It occurred to me that skunks are really quite pretty animals, with their shiny black fur and crisp white stripes.  Then, of course, I thought of their smell.  As far as I know, there is no creature that likes, [...]

Light

February 4, 2010

Reading the creation story in Genesis, I suddenly pictured myself tucked safely under God’s arm, watching as He worked, day by day calling more and more of His universe into being.  “Let there be light,” He said.  Now, I can conceive of utter darkness, no-light.  But what would it be, from eternal darkness, when there [...]