Many years ago, I was in the North Carolina mountains with other Youth for Christ volunteer staff. We had traveled from Bradenton, Florida, to spend several days helping out at the home where we stayed: weeding the garden, helping with the goats, and fellowshipping. On this trip, I was struggling with decisions that needed to be made in my life. What path should I choose?
Mental Weeding – 10/2022
Renewing our minds as Paul asks can be difficult. Unwanted negative thoughts can come into our minds at any time, so we need to “weed” these thoughts to regain our focus. Weeding our gardens and lawns every spring is important. As librarians, we also know that weeding is an important part of collection development, to prevent overfilling our libraries with obsolete or worn books.
Time is Running Out – 09/2022
My undergraduate college had a tradition of assigning secret pals to encourage one another with gifts and messages. One year my creative secret pal covered the door to my room with Time Magazine covers and a sign that read, “Time is running out…” I enjoyed looking at my door decoration as the end of the semester with term paper deadlines and final exams approached. The door decoration reminded neighbors in my dormitory of all the work they had to do.
Transformed by the Holy Spirit – 06/2022
As I reflect on the past two years, listen to any news broadcast, or read any newspaper, I am reminded of the world crisis so many have experienced and the heartache and pain many have endured. We have made it through some unprecedented times, and we can surely thank God who has been faithful. Being a librarian in today’s environment is full of challenges that can be heartbreaking and painful. As we look toward the work of our next seasons, what better way to prepare for this new season than with the desire to be transformed by the Holy Spirit!
Tell Your Story – 05/2022
I have always loved stories. Stories are told through music, literature, biographies, and in many other ways. I teach children’s literature in our college’s education department, and my favorite genre is historical fiction. I love how it connects fictional characters and fictional scenes to create an exciting story that, for the most part, authentically reflects history. Even events such as the Olympics or the Super Bowl include the stories of the athletes and their families.
Waiting for Tulips – 04/2022
Tulips are my favorite flower. Their burst of color at the start of spring brings joy and welcomed anticipation of warmer days ahead. Growing up in southern Alabama, I never saw tulips in flower gardens or carefully manicured landscapes. Winters are not cold enough in the coastal region of the South for the blooms to form underground. God created this amazing little flower to develop its beauty and buds out of sight, deep underground during the coldest months of the winter when the surface is barren, brown, and often frozen. Now living in Ohio, every spring when these beauties start to burst forth from the cold, bare ground, I can’t help but smile!
A Time to Weep – 03/2022
As I reflect on these past few years, in this season that never seems to end, the years are a tumble of continued change, loss, and uncertainty. Each person is experiencing these years differently. I know that good things have happened in all our lives, yet there is a heaviness that is with us. The pandemic has heightened our awareness of death and suffering and of injustice and brokenness.
Keep Shining and Hoping! – 02/2022
Seventeen years ago, on the eve of my best friend’s surgery to remove a tumor in her shoulder, God gave me a vision of an eagle soaring and the accompanying verses in Isaiah 40:29-31.
The Sound of Silence – 01/2022
As the 27th chapter of Deuteronomy begins, Moses has assembled Israel on the plains of Moab for a second announcement of their covenant with Yahweh. He outlines the blessings (or curses) the people should expect based upon their faithfulness (or unfaithfulness) to the covenant.