I was feeling pretty blue. As I maneuvered my car on the winding road with the wind blowing leaves all around, the tears trickled out. I knew the country I had grown up in and loved was in a very bad place. I said out loud, "God, will you fight for us? That's the question. Because maybe you're sick of us, and it's time we get what we deserve. I wouldn't blame you at all. Wickedness keeps increasing, and we the church have let it. We have not been the shining lights you called us to be." Immediately the song came through the radio, "You're the God who fights for me, Lord of every victory, Hallelujah, Hallelujah. You have torn apart the sea, You have led me through the deep, Hallelujah, Hallelujah…" (Egypt, Bethel Music & Corey Asbury) My sadness turned to peace and joy as the creator of...

My dog Tasha loved to go for walks. Well, we had to call them "W's." If the word WALK got mentioned prematurely, she would start yelping and spinning in circles. But the truth is, I loved going for walks just as much as she did. A walk around the neighborhood was a wonderful opportunity to breathe in the fresh air and scope out the various flower gardens along the way. But, sometimes when Tasha and I would saunter along, I would get so preoccupied looking around me that I'd forget to keep my eyes on the path. As you well know, every now and again you will come upon a spot in a sidewalk that has either sunken down a bit or has risen up slightly. If I wasn't paying attention, I could find myself tripping, twisting an ankle, or worse yet, sprawled out in an embarrassing heap. Someti...

Some of you say, "Today or tomorrow we will go… we will stay… we will do…"But you do not know what will happen tomorrow! Your life is like a mist.You can see it for a short time, but then it goes away. So instead you should say, "If the Lord wants, we will live and do this or that." James 4:13-17 [New Century Version] Most folks in the 21st century live by their daily, monthly, and yearly planners. I admit that even before my new calendar goes up on the wall each January, I have already penciled in plans as far out as October! We funny little humans seem to schedule ourselves into oblivion, running from one thing to the next. Yet, we rarely stop to think about the fact that all of our best-laid plans could come screeching to a halt in a blink of an eye. Sadly, when those roadblocks eventua...

The biblical festivals written out in detail in books like Exodus and Leviticus are full of invitation to embody God's eternal calendar in real time here on earth. Each festival offers the individual, and the faith community as a whole, the opportunity to leave slavery, celebrate revelations, and receive the shalom of being fully seen, loved and covered by their creator. Each festival is a learning environment encouraging the student to live more wholly (and holy) and with a sense of the original purpose of God's Kingdom on earth; which leads me to telling you we are in the festival season of Sukkot, or you may know it as, the Festival of Booths. The festival of Sukkot is marked by Jewish families setting up little tent like structures in their gardens or on their balconies and decorating ...

"My health may fail, and my spirit may grow weak, but God remains the strength of my heart; he is mine forever." Psalm 73:26 My dear friend, Julie, and founder of this site is living out this verse. Diagnosed with a severe health prognosis, she continues to exhibit peace and joy. She chooses to focus on the beauty of nature around her and share it with others in her amazing photos. God remains the strength of her heart. How does she do it? I don't have all the answers, but I believe I know some of the pieces of the mosaic, having known her for many years. First, she has spent years walking with God. She has been faithful in loving him and walking out his guidelines for right living and loving others. She has walked with God faithfully through the good and the hard soil. She knows who ...

 We cannot forget the terrorist attacks on 9/11! On the Pentagon and Shanksville!.  LuAnn, Julie and Sally

Happy Labor Day! LuAnn, Julie and Sally 

At every moment and every situation, God is the intimate, attentive and encouraging friend. — John O'Donohue/ Anam Cara I love my precious Savior… You are acquainted with all my ways… —Psalm 139:3. He walks so intimately with me; on this journey I am on. A journey with dementia and primary progressive aphasia. I love this quote by Frederick Buechner, "If we keep our hearts and minds open, if we listen with patience and hope…then I think we come to recognize, beyond all doubt, that however faintly we may hear him, he is indeed to speaking to us…his word comes to each of us is precious beyond telling." "Like singing on a boat during a terrible storm at sea. You can't stop the raging storm but singing can change the hearts and spirits of the people who are together on that ship." ― Anne Lamot...

He leads me beside quiet waters… he restores my soul. —Psalm 23:2 I am sitting by still waters today, but there is a party on the lake. People having fun; diving in and dive-bombing into the water. Someone is tubing on the lake as well, and jets skis too. It is not exactly quiet, but it does restore my soul. Just when I was going to write that it is calmed down now, there is another whoop from the party boat. It is so peaceful here by the water, despite the party. I took my shoes off and dangled my feet in the lake. I love the sound of water lapping up on the shore. It is so soothing. It reminds me of the Allegheny River when I was young. My Grandpa Simey would take us out on the rowboat. We would pack a lunch and I remember the waves lapping on the shore of the river as we parked our boat...

The season of summer is still warming our bones, the fields are looking good for harvest, and we will soon be welcoming the biblical holidays of Rosh Hashanah, the biblical New Year, Yom Kippur, the Day of Atonement and Sukkoth, the festival of booths. These are known as The High Holy Days of the Judaic / Hebrew calendar and as believers they are our inheritance too. I have marked these Holy Days for at least the last ten years and they have been such a gift to my spiritual and physical journey, often with no need for a binary division, as it seems that the physical and spiritual truly are ONE, if we have eyes to see it. Before we arrive at these Holy Days God invites us to participate in a process of preparation which is marked by the 12th month of the Hebrew / Judaic calendar, Elul. (The...

Her hand slapped the edge of the pool. Then her head emerged from the aqua blue water, and she turned around to look at the results; her mouth became an uppercase O as she pulled her goggles up in case she was seeing it wrong. But she wasn't! Seventeen-year-old Lydia Jacoby became the first gold-medal swimmer from Alaska, and the first swimmer to receive gold at the Tokyo Olympics. She beat out defending gold-medalist Lilly King and other favorites in the 100-meter breaststroke. Her fans in her hometown erupted with joy and celebration, a favored scene replayed many times. We all celebrated with her in spirit. This story was just one amazing rose in a bouquet of many exciting and inspiring moments this Olympics. Stories of athletes overcoming severe sickness, devastating injuries, pov...

We were all intrigued. All eyes were riveted on them as the Wedding Day approached. The would-be King of England had a found a bride. Through the miracle of television, we were invited to join them tuned in early that Wednesday, July 29th, 1981. I happened to one of them. We had just arrived in the States from France with our two-week-old son. I, like the rest of world, was curious how the Royals live. I wanted this for myself. We saw Diana riding in a horse-drawn carriage to St. John's Cathedral. Trumpeters heralded her arrival. Diana's incredible gown was forty-six yards of silk to match her complexion. One hundred yards of netting to poof her crinoline skirts. It took her three-and-a-half minutes to walk down the aisle of the church and to her groom. What we didn't w...

Jeremiah 33:11: "The sounds of joy and gladness, the voices of bride and bridegroom, and the voices of those who bring thank offerings to the house of the Lord, saying,'Give thanks to the Lord Almighty, for the Lord is good; his love endures forever." Matthew 25:1 "At that time the kingdom of heaven will be like ten virgins who took their lamps and went out to meet the bridegroom." I had been feeling a flood of loneliness. There I was pregnant with my first child, and I was so far from home. Rey and I, through series of events, found we were living Southern France. It was a thrill of a lifetime. Rey was getting a chance to play European Professional Basketball. The president of the team and his family extended an invitation to us; maybe it will take the edge off my...

We love our readers! LuAnn, Julie and Sally 

Thank you to our readers,  LuAnn, Julie and Sally 

We love our readers,  LuAnn, Julie & Sally

Happy July! We love our readers! LuAnn, Julie and Sally 

We're going to take July off...LuAnn, Julie and Sally "Summer afternoon—summer afternoon; to me those have always been the two most beautiful words in the English language."― Henry James"it's a smile, it's a kiss, a sip of water ... it's summertime!"― Kenny Chesney Summertime is always the best of what might be…  Love in the sunshine. Swim in the sea. Drink in the wild air. - Ralph Waldo Emerson  If it could always summer…always lonely, the fruit always ripe. -Evelyn Waugh

Live a life of love… Ephesians 5:2a A Safe Place to Land Alice wasn't the only one to have a wonderland…I had one too. Or at least that's what I used to call it. In actuality, my wonderland was a modest little house that belonged to my grandparents, nestled in the Appalachian foothills, along the banks of the Allegheny River in Pennsylvania. Although the setting was idyllic to a little girl with a romantic heart, it was the warmth and unconditional love that my grandparents showed to my sister and me, that made summers spent in PA such a refuge. During our parent's strained 19-year marriage, my sister, Sherri, and I learned to cope in our own unique ways; her through escape, me by assuming the role of burden-bearer. But ahh…when we drove "over the river and through the woods to grandm...

As I recently sat next to our old hurting dog to say goodbye, I was thankful for my husband's arm on my shoulders as I sobbed. My husband is a steady rock for me and for my children. With Father's Day approaching I am reminded of how he continues to be involved in our children's lives even though they are out on their own; he provides wisdom and support as they face life's curve balls, steep mountains, and dark valleys of fear, anxiety or loss. He celebrates their successes. He provides guidance for big decisions. I see how he is a father to others whose fathers are absent. I watch how hard he works to provide. The unending emails and problems to solve seven days a week. I smile when I see how he makes my grand-nieces and nephews laugh by his silly antics, pushing them ...

Disappointment: To fail to meet the expectation of hope. When hopes or expectation are prevented from being realized. Hope: A feeling of expectation and desire for a particular thing to happen. A feeling of trust. Want something to happen or be the case. The common sign for hope is the rainbow but have you ever really thought about it? I was pondering it today. I mean the rainbow is literally vapor and light. Neither of which you can tangibly grab hold of, which makes hope more and more a mystery. There is a verse in Romans 8 v 24, "For we were saved in this hope, but hope that is seen is not hope, for why does one still hope for what she sees? But if we hope for what we do not see, we eagerly wait for it with perseverance." The rainbow is fleeting, so to me that makes its helpful in the c...

We realize some of you going through a tough time... some of your friends have even died this year. We love our readers, LuAnn, Julie and Sally 

Thank you readers for being so faithful! Love and bless you this Memorial Day weekend! Julie, Sally and LuAnn 

Drag your thoughts away from your troubles...by the ears, by the heels, or any other way you can manage it. Mark Twain Trust is not a passive state of mind. It is a vigorous act of the soul by which we choose to lay hold on the promises of God and cling to them despite the adversity that at times seeks to overwhelm us. Jerry Bridges Trust. Such a small word…such a hard word. We say we trust God. But, we often donʼt. Itʼs revealed by what we say and how we act. Itʼs revealed by how we swim around, round and round, in our worry. I hear the lack of trust often, many times from my own mouth. "I trust God, but…." As if our "buts" are too big for God. I was with a friend the other day who was stewing once more about whom her oldest son was dating; she was a nice Christian girl, but she...

I am the Vine; My Father is the Gardener…you are the branches.If a man remains in Me and I in him, he will bear much fruit... John 15:1a and 5a The picturesque town where my husband Rey and I lived in southern France was surrounded by vineyards.Growing up in the Midwest where soy, corn and wheat fields spread across the land, acres of vineyards were an anomaly to us.So every now and then, as we traveled the winding roads of our wine-producing region, our curiosity would get the best of us, and we'd just have to pull our little Fiat over to the side of the road and sneak a peek down one of those neatly manicured rows. Joseph, one of the financiers of the basketball team that my husband played for, happened to be a vinedresser.When he extended an invitation to us, to dine with him at hi...