Latest Posts

Dear

He said to her, “Dear woman, why are you crying? Who are you looking for?" Mary answered, thinking he was only the gardener, “Sir, if you have taken his body somewhere else, tell me and I will go and…” “Mary,” Jesus interrupted her. Turning to face him, she said “Rabboni!” (Aramaic for “my teacher”). John 20:15-16 dear: beloved, loved, much loved, adored, cherished, precious, esteemed, respected Where I live, a common address of another person… Read More

Clean

And a leper approached and bowed low before him, saying, “Lord, if you are willing, you can make me clean.” He stretched out his hand and touched him saying, “I am willing. Be clean!” Immediately his leprosy was cleansed. Matthew 8:2-4 The entire theology of honor is encapsulated in these three brief verses. Editors constantly urge writers to reduce their words; show, don’t tell. Be succinct, yet powerful. I rarely succeed. But Matthew did. Today… Read More

A Letter to My Sisters and Brothers in Central Asia

After you have suffered for a little while, the God of all grace who called you to his eternal glory in Christ will himself restore, confirm, strengthen, and establish you. 1 Peter 5:10 To my newest sisters and brothers, If I could erase myself, so all you could see is Jesus, I would. The words He gave me for you when we were together are His own, from His heart. I am just His servant,… Read More

No Place

While they were there, the time came for her to deliver her child. And she gave birth to her firstborn son and wrapped him in strips of cloth and laid him in a manger, because there was no place for them in the inn. Luke 2:6-7 No place for them?  I find this story perhaps most surprising of all in the Christmas narrative. How could this be, among a culture known for its hospitality to… Read More

Driven Away

God seeks what has been driven away. Ecclesiastes 3:15 Hagar was driven away from her home (see Genesis 16). Her name, Hagar, carries the root in both Hebrew and Arabic that means to flee. For Christians, Muslims, and Jews, she has become a symbol of fleeing. Some might call her the mother of refugees. The God Who Seeks Those Driven Away pursued Hagar in the desert. Alone with her child, destitute, she believed death was… Read More

What is Your Name?

And Jesus asked him, “What is your name?” Mark 5:9 “What's your name?” the kind man in the appliance department asked my eighteen-month-old daughter. Blonde curls framed her dimpled face and her blue eyes sparkled as she answered. “Fweetie.”  Fweetie was her version of the affectionate name we always called her: Sweetie. Unashamed of her name, she knew who she was: dear to her father and me, no matter how she pronounced it. Not everyone… Read More

My Native Language

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was with God in the beginning. Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made. In him was life, and that life was the light of men. The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not understood it (John 1:1-5). My first language is English. I do not remember… Read More

unDefended

Those who live in the shelter of the Most High will find rest in the shadow of the Almighty. This I declare about the Lord: He alone is my refuge, my place of safety; he is my God, and I trust him. For he will rescue you from every trap and protect you from deadly disease. He will cover you with his feathers. He will shelter you with his wings. His faithful promises are your… Read More

unClean

Everyone was settling down for sleep, but the old woman had to talk to the teacher. What she’d heard tonight was earth-shattering. Mind-blowing. Life-changing. Filth removed, disgrace transformed to honor, rejected now accepted? The story of the sick woman and Jesus was unlike any of the stories told in her tribe. The flickering firelight deepened the rich, warm espresso of her wizened face as she leaned close to the storyteller. “Thank you.” Like the woman… Read More

unKnown

 Is being unknown such a bad thing? The thought of being known can be terrifying if we don't like what we know about ourselves. The possibility of rejection looms large and threatening, and sometimes, like during a global pandemic when we are forced to distance ourselves anyway, we wonder if being unknown might be a good thing. It's nice not wearing makeup, working from home in pajamas, just coming as we are to life, nobody watching… Read More