As I wound down the narrow road, I felt anticipation build. Every bend of the foliage and arc of the bridges increased my expectancy. When the shuttle bus rounded the last corner, I gasped as the 55-foot-tall Norway spruce and encircling evergreens illuminated the front lawn. Over a century ago, landscape architect Frederick Law Olmsted suggested this spectacular approach to …
There are two states of mind. One that needs more. One that has enough. The first are “like greedy dogs, they are never satisfied” (Isaiah 56:11 NLT). The second is satisfied from the first moment of their waking (Psalm 17:15). The first eats more, drinks more, and buys more, but can never be fulfilled. …
I was in college when I tried chamomile tea for the first time. I’d read about it as I child. What a soothing, delicious potion it must have been. It even calmed Peter Rabbit after his harrowing adventure in Mr. McGregor’s garden. “One table-spoonful to be taken at bedtime,” his mother had said. I asked my mother about it and …
“He who practices the Truth comes to the light” (John 3:21). A room may look elegant and romantic by the flicker of candlelight, but expose it to the brightness of day and all inconsistencies become evident. The cracking paint, the peeling wallpaper, the dingy carpet. What low light masks; the sun’s rays accentuate. If we are truly …
I love today’s post from my husband, Mark. He is not only a wise leadership coach, he is also a meticulous gardener, So, I can say that he speaks with authority on this issue. (Don’t believe me? Here he is rushing to put down fertilizer before it snows. He didn’t even change clothes!) ——————– When used regarding marriage, the phrases, …
“The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want.” (Psalm 23:1) Yesterday, we talked about the similarities between parenting and herding sheep. If we were to substitute the idea of shepherding with our lives as parents (even as spiritual mentors), Psalm 23:1 might sound something like this: “My parents take such good care of me that …
