I have a GPS for the car and it’s helped me find my way more times than I can count. But it’s also led me astray a time or two. I’ve had it long enough now that every time I turn it on it electronically “shouts” that I really should update the maps. After all, […]
When a Congregation Dreams Dreams
The congregation with whom I serve has spent the months of April and May in an extensive visioning process. On Pentecost Sunday–the day for seeing visions and dreaming dreams–we will complete and offer a survey inviting participants in the faith community to share their dreams for Massanutten in God’s good future. (You may see the […]
An Open Life
“How did you end up becoming part of this congregation?” That was the question I asked a group of 18 elders who had gathered to take part in a board retreat. As they each offered their answers in turn, there was no mistaking that a common thread connected them to one another and to the […]
Learning to Tell the Time
For the third Saturday in a row, our family is overbooked. We start with a soccer game, then a tea at the church, and then the May Fest at the girls’ school. And, while each event will bring its own measure of joy, I can’t help but wonder about how the cumulative effect may diminish […]
A Daughter’s Goal and a Father’s Joy
Rachel had her second soccer game last night. The fact that I never wrote about the first game is a pretty good clue as to how it went. Suffice it to say, if suffering produces character, our team gained a lot in that first game. But last night, things were different. Not only was it […]
What’s in a Name? Actually, Quite a Lot
When I was growing up, my father and I would spend most Saturdays and a number of Sunday afternoons paddling down the creek that flowed out of one end of White Rock Lake. Even though we were well within the bounds of Dallas, when you made the first bend in the creek, it was as […]