Vista Questions for a Spacious Year

We can hardly help it. The calendar turns not only to a new month but to a new year. We move from a month of busy Christmas celebrations into a vista of 365 open days. Perhaps we see a new slate or canvas, and we are nudged to dream a bit, to hope. Planner-lover or...

Sometimes It’s OK to be Stuck

Sometimes, maybe more than sometimes, we feel stuck. Could it be that it’s exactly the right place for us to be? I know, how could I say that? It’s not comfortable. It’s frustrating and disheartening. It messes with our emotions and desires and where we thought we...

Off and Running: A Year of Greater Grace

“I’m not saying that I have this all together, that I have it made. But I am well on my way, reaching out for Christ, who has so wondrously reached out for me. Friends, don’t get me wrong: By no means do I count myself an expert in all of this, but I’ve got my eye on...

Ribbons of Celebration and Reflection

I tug the ribbons loose on a Christmas box I labeled long ago, “Nativity Sets and Other Often-Used Decorations.” I always open this box first. Inside is a nativity set I’ll arrange across the top of our upright piano and several smaller sets that also have their...

Audacity and Imagination

In her book, Wild and Free, Jess Connolly describes a dream she received. In this dream, she and a friend stand over her concrete planter box, one filled with only deadpan soil and rocks. As she watches the soil, vibrant, colorful flowers and lush foliage begin...