Anna is the very last character in the Christmas Story. Mary and Joseph have left behind the shepherds and the stable animals, stopping in the temple to fulfill their requirements of their faith. Upon arrival, they meet Simeon the Priest who would perform the...
I take so much delight in the silence of the men in the Christmas story. Zechariah can't speak. Joseph doesn't speak. While the words and emotions of Mary and Elizabeth are unapologetically centered. The sound of Advent is the voice of women.
Yet as I read the birth stories about Jesus I cannot help but conclude that though the world may be tilted toward the rich and powerful, God is tilted toward the underdog.
You're not a victim for sharing your story. You are a survivor setting the world on fire with your truth. And you never know who needs your light, your warmth, and raging courage.
During the celebration of her 70 years of reign this summer, the queen's former bodyguard Richard "Dick" Griffin told Sky News about a hilarious encounter Elizabeth had with two Americans while hiking in the hills near her castle in Scotland. The hikers...
A pastor of a small church would occasionally call on one gentleman to pray, and every time this one particular guy would pray, he would end with the strangest statement, “And, oh Lord, prop us up on our leaning side.” Finally, the pastor pulled him aside, and he...
From his hospital bed this morning (one-day stay for a minor procedure), Dad asked me to please help him with flowers and a cake for Mom’s birthday. She is turning 75 this weekend. Once at the store, I had to send multiple pictures of options to him before he was...
A few years ago, my son attended the funeral of a classmate whose life had been tragically cut short by an automobile accident. Though Stan did not know him very well as they were both relatively new to the school, he said the boy was “soft-spoken and very kind.”...
Death of a loved one is a tear in the social fabric…it evokes two great needs, both of them very public. First, the body must be cared for and given disposition. Second, the community needs to tell once more the story of the life of the one who has died and the...
I work in a decent sized, local, indie bookstore. It’s a great job 99% of the time and a lot of our customers are pretty neat people. Any who, middle of the day this little old lady comes up. She’s lovably kooky. She effuses how much she loves the store and how she...