Blog
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Join me in some shameless audacity?
The disciples ask Jesus to teach them to pray. He answers with the now-famous Lord’s prayer, and then tells an intriguing story about you needing bread in the middle of the night because of unexpected visitors. You go to your friend and ask, but he can’t be bothered to get out of bed just on…
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Devotional of the week: Commissioned
“Whom shall I send? And who will go for us?” And I said, “Here am I. Send me!” Isaiah 6:8 I’ve had the above verse hanging on my wall for years, for it reminds me that God empowers us to bring his love to a hurting world. We might not even have to move geographically.…
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Interview with memoirist Carolyn Weber
I’m like an addict when it comes to books. Compelled to read, understand, savor, wrangle with, be moved by, learn to live from these silent companions who speak so loudly. I read dead people. Death is a good barometer for determining true canon, I think, as is overcoming death. Jesus’ own example speaks to such. That doesn’t…
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Devotional of the Week: The freedom of forgiveness
“See, this has touched your lips; your guilt is taken away and your sin atoned for.” Isaiah 6:7 I love how the Old Testament foreshadows the New. Isaiah has confessed that he is a man of unclean lips and declares that he’s ruined; finished. But God sends a messenger to bring release from his sins.…
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On Being British
I woke early this morning, with Scotland on my mind. Would I now not be able to talk about the UK, with it instead being the DK – a Divided Kingdom? What would the result be? I switched on my computer, hurriedly turning to the BBC website, surprised by my tears. I’m grateful the union…
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Devotional of the week: Controlled Burn
“Then one of the seraphim flew to me with a live coal in his hand.” Isaiah 6:6 Our usual reaction to a forest fire is negative as we think of wildlife killed, flames raging out of control, damage done. But a controlled burn is a technique in forest management, when a fire is set in…
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Only in America?
Only in America, or so they say. A friend is roadtripping and posted a photo of a heart attack on a plate: a bacon cheeseburger with a huge side of fries. Doesn’t sound too unusual, until you hear that the bun is made of two glazed doughnuts. Seriously. Yep, that’s about 1500 calories in one…
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Devotional of the week: Unclean
“Woe to me!” I cried. “I am ruined! For I am a man of unclean lips.” Isaiah 6:5 My kids are still young enough that when they have done something wrong, they usually confess straight away. They (thankfully) haven’t yet learned how to hide their shame or guilt. But at some point they will probably…
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Advice to a newbie writer
How did you first get in to writing professionally? I’m a newbie to the craft, though I have been journaling for years… I have several ideas floating around in my head, but am unsure how to get them from mere ideas to something other people would want to read. Hello newbie writer friend! Thanks for…
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Devotional of the week: Holy Times Three
“Holy, holy, holy is the Lord Almighty; the whole earth is full of his glory.” Isaiah 6:3 The six-winged creatures in Isaiah’s vision aren’t the cuddly angles that grace today’s greeting cards and posters. No, these that Isaiah sees are solid and huge, for when they speak the walls and foundations reverberate and the temple…
