Knack For Noticing
Maybe it's because she eats unlimited pasta without getting fat, buys lingerie for the heck of it and meets a series of hot guys, but there is a reason for the fascination of thousands of readers with Eat, Pray, Love. Read more
Maybe it's because she eats unlimited pasta without getting fat, buys lingerie for the heck of it and meets a series of hot guys, but there is a reason for the fascination of thousands of readers with Eat, Pray, Love. Read more
Confessions of a Possession-Purger I haven’t been very faithful with my blogging the past few days because I’ve been preoccupied. I’ve been overcome by an obsessive compulsive disorder which is the opposite of Hoarding. According to a website presented by a professional decluttering expert entitled, Jeri’s Organizing and Decluttering News, it is called OCS (Obsessive Compulsive Spartanism). I prefer to call it PPP (Proactive Possession Purging) Our 26 year old daughter Rebecca is getting married on September 4. We will... Read more
The Preacher as Last Comic Standing? Preachers hear lots of feedback after they preach. “You could be a hypnotist; you have such a soothing voice.” (Is this really a good thing?) “I like your new robe.” (If you can’t say anything good about the sermon, mention the robe) “I couldn’t hear a word you said” (This is why we should have had the sound system replaced and not just “repaired” by a church member’s uncle’s son-in- law) Another comment often... Read more
Most people die the way they live. Not everybody, but most people. I am a student of famous people's last words. They say a lot about how that person lived. Read more
“A Trinity-Shaped Life” A Meditation on Trinity Sunday Trinity Sunday, May 30, 2010 I wonder if, on Trinity Sunday, many people feel like the sermon is answering a question they aren’t asking. (What does the Trinity have to do with my daily life?) And many preachers may think to themselves, “Here is another occasion when my job is to try to convince people that an abstract concept they never give much thought to is foundational to their lives.” The Trinity... Read more
‘Our airbrush folks went too far’ I had breakfast with my Aunt Minnie yesterday at a 1950’s style diner in McKinney, Texas. Aunt Minnie is a recent widow in her mid 70’s. She now lives in Pennsylvania but is in Texas on a road trip to see her siblings and nieces and nephews. In her rental car with her navigation system programmed, she is finding her way around and having a grand adventure. Over our grits, eggs and biscuits, she ... Read more
The first step is to notice what you see. The second step is to develop confidence that what you'ved noticed has some significance. Things like a scenic tour in a fog shrouded bus, God doing a "voiceover" with good news while an eye doctor narrates some bad news, clay pots as the Apostle Paul's metaphor for fragile lives, compost heaps of insights as fertile soil for blooming faith.... Read more
This blog is an invitation to people of faith to cultivate your "knack for noticing" (KFN) where God is speaking to you in the course of your daily life. Many of us go through each day seeing but not really noticing what we see. I invite you to share the images, anecdotes, memories, conversations, insights, stray thoughts, and stories that come to your mind and heart each day. If you're a teacher or preacher the KFN blog will be a source for quirky, creative anecdotes and insights for lessons and sermons. Read more
We all know about the dramatic story of Pentecost recounted in Acts 2:1-12, complete with a rush of wind and tongues of fire. It's a story it would be all too easy for us to stand back from and take the role of spectators. So this Pentecost I'm meditating on the Inside Story of the coming of the Spirit and what happens then.... Read more
Why can't I back over the tire spikes if I want to? Maybe I changed my mind and decided I don't want to return my rental car, that I want to go back the way I came. Read more
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