In December 2021 I participated in an hour and a half ZOOM meeting with two educators as they led a hands-on pie-baking activity with Baranof Elementary School students and their families in Sitka, Alaska. And the wonderful part of that for me was that they were using the recipe from my children’s reader Sweet Potato … Continue reading Wonderful Thank You Gifts from Sitka, Alaska!
We are living in a time when it is very difficult to know what truth is, or perhaps it has always been that way. I recently reread George Orwell’s novel 1984 written and published in 1949. I read it for the first time in the 1960s; so I, as well as Orwell, was looking into … Continue reading Truth or Lies–Is it Possible to Know?
The blog posts in my Who Is Jesus Series define Jesus in His own words: “the bread of life,” “the light of the world,” “the door,” “the good shepherd” and today, “the resurrection and the life.” All are teachings of Jesus found in God’s Holy Word as the Gospel of John presents them. As a … Continue reading Who Is Jesus? The Resurrection and the Life
How do you access the various places you go during the week? Whether we are going into our home; a place where we work, attend class, or enjoy ourselves; where we buy our daily necessities; or our house of worship—most likely we pass through a door. Even if we go to some of these places … Continue reading Who Is Jesus? The Door
Before I address the question of who Jesus is, maybe I should tell you briefly who I am and what might qualify me to ask you, my readers, to trust my thoughts on the subject. I am not academically trained in Bible studies nor ancient Hebrew, Greek, and Aramaic—the languages of the Dead Sea Scroll … Continue reading Who Is Jesus? The Light of the World
When someone asks who you are, what do you say? Maybe just your first name. Or perhaps your first and last name. Or you may even add your job description depending on where you are when the question is asked. God in the Old Testament of the Holy Bible identified Himself to Moses with a … Continue reading Who Is Jesus? The Bread of Life
I don't know if the monetary value or the number of your Christmas, Hanukkah, or other Winter Holiday presents was different this year than in years past. Perhaps your financial situation has been insecure due to the ramifications of the spread of Coronavirus-19 and its variants. Maybe you are feeling down that you could not … Continue reading The Best Presents: Family and Friends
As I was recently going through some old family documents, I came across a United States Postal Service first class stamp with the denomination of six cents. “Wow!” I thought. “When I sent a Christmas card this year, the cost was fifty-eight.” The stamp had never been used to send a piece of mail, but … Continue reading In the Beginning…
English—“Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good; his love endures forever.” Psalm 107:1 NIV (The Holy Bible, New International Version 2011) Français—<<Dites merci au SEIGNEUR, car il est bon, et son amour est pour toujours!>> Psaume 107:1 PDV (La Sainte Bible, Parole de Vie 2017) Español—<<Den gracias al Señor, porque él es bueno, … Continue reading Give Thanks!
One of my climbing red rose bushes last year developed a really thick stem with huge prickly thorns for practically its entire length of about four feet. That started me to think about the thorns we are enduring in our daily lives which have been turned topsy-turvy in 2020 and 2021 as we react to … Continue reading Enduring Thorns
There are times when life can become overwhelming. The sense of not being able to shoulder alone what is being thrown at you is very real for all of us at one time or another. It may be the loss of a loved one. Or losing one’s job. Struggling with health issues. Betrayal of a … Continue reading Carrying Each Other’s Burdens
This may be the season when you find yourself with extra green tomatoes on the vine in your garden, or you see them at your farmer’s market or at your grocer’s. If so, here is an easy recipe for Sizzling Southern Fried Green Tomatoes, just the way I made them for my children when they … Continue reading Sizzling Southern Fried Green Tomatoes: Tingle Your Taste Buds (Recipe with Photos)
During the fall and winter months—or anytime, for that matter—taking a little extra time to prepare a special treat to eat can help take our minds off things that may be challenging in our lives. Here is a favorite recipe of mine for Sweet Potato Pie. Sweet Potato Preparation: 2 cups cooked sweet potatoes drained … Continue reading Maybe It’s Time for Sweet Potato Pie (Recipe)
Most everyone loves chocolate. If that includes you, you are in for a surprise at how easy and delicious today’s Magic Chocolate Cake is. It has a texture somewhere between chocolate cake and chocolate brownie. The recipe comes from a vegetarian cookbook called The Peaceful Palate by Jennifer Raymond. She says it is magic because … Continue reading The Magic Is in the Mix (Recipe with Photos)
From time to time I’ve watched a few of the PBS episodes called “Storage Wars.” These are about abandoned rental storage units all over the U.S.A. opened up for on-site auction sales of the contents. Whether the unit contains junk or ‘jewels,’ it may represent our desire to acquire more and more. Along with that … Continue reading How Much Stuff Is Enough?
Sir Walter Scott was a Scottish author of novels, plays, and poems. In 1808 he wrote the poem “Marmion: A tale of Flodden Field.” In it he cleverly and skillfully pointed out the risk of telling falsehoods with the couplet: “Oh what a tangled web we weave/When first we practice to deceive.” Just as with … Continue reading The Tangled Web We Weave
We see it all around us: cars stolen, vehicles broken into; valuables stripped from a home or shop through break-in and entry; packages snatched from a front porch; retail merchandise slipped out of a store; someone’s identity information used in a fraudulent manner; take-overs of personal, corporate, and governmental online systems through hacking. The list … Continue reading I’ll Just Help Myself, Thank You!
Little girls pluck the petals from a flower and dream their way to the colorful last one. “He loves me. He loves me not,” they repeat. Middle school boys exhibit awkwardness when that certain someone is close by. Youths and adults seek companionship and intimacy. Everyone wants a love that will last a lifetime. The … Continue reading Faithfulness Within a Sacred Union
Genesis, the first book of Moses in the Holy Bible, tells us that God created the first man Adam from the dust of the earth and the first woman Eve from one of Adam’s ribs. We are also told that these first persons in the world were created in the image of the God who … Continue reading Disregard for the Image of God
Whether your mother and father are your biological parents or others who raised you, they are the reason you have life. Of course we know some did a better job at loving, protecting, and nurturing than others. It hasn’t been very long since my youngest adult child said to me, “Mom, thanks for giving me … Continue reading Those Who Gave Us Life
Although the term R&R has varying interpretations in different situations, a basic meaning is rest and recreation. Now, we all know what “rest” means. But wait a minute: how did you pronounce “recreation” in your head as you were reading? Did you say [RECK ree A shun]? Or did you say [REE kree A shun]? … Continue reading Making Time for R&R
What a person is named or called is a sensitive issue for many. What Mom or Dad thought was a unique and lovely name for their newborn may later cause that child to be ridiculed. A guy who is a “Jr.” may feel he can never be the achiever his Dad was. Some love nicknames. … Continue reading What’s In a Name ?
Today’s snippet blog post presents what I call the Second Lighthouse Lamp of a list of ten spiritual directives which anyone can use to give meaning and direction to life. The first was acknowledging and worshiping One God. The second, which we are looking at today, instructs us not to create and then worship the … Continue reading Creating Our Own Gods
The directives which are the basis of the Judeo-Christian tradition of reverence and worship of God, and also believers’ conduct, are found in the early writings of the Holy Bible. However, even those raised in this tradition sometimes are conflicted between wanting to do what they have been taught is ‘right’ and feeling constricted by … Continue reading Ancient Lamps Still Operational in a Modern World
Just as the beams from the lamp of a lighthouse cut through the nighttime sky to guide sea vessels safely to shore, so the Bible--God’s Holy Word--provides lamps to help us navigate this journey we call life. Today’s blog post begins a new snippet series. Each entry will be a 'lamp.' And each lamp will … Continue reading Lamps to Help Us See Our Way Through Life
English—“Do to others as you would have them do to you." Luke 6:31 NIV (The Holy Bible, New International Version 2011) Français—«Faites pour les autres ce que vous voulez qu’ils fassent pour vous.» Luc 6 :31 PDV (La Sainte Bible, Parole de Vie 2017) Español—«Hagan ustedes con los demás como quieren que los demás hagan con … Continue reading A North Star Worthy of Following
I don't know if the number or the monetary value of your Christmas, Hanukkah, or other Winter Holiday presents is different this year than in years past. Perhaps your financial situation is insecure due to the ramifications of the spread of the Coronavirus. Maybe you are feeling down that you cannot provide those holiday gifts … Continue reading Family and Friends Are the Best Presents
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