Have you ever noticed how good it feels to give? I remember the first time I’d earned my own money to spend on people at Christmastime. I was 13, so I couldn’t go out shopping without someone driving me, which means they’d know about their presents, so I got the sneaky idea of ordering everyone […]
Read more "A Giving Heart"One day a few weeks ago as I was driving home from work, I stopped to wait for a red light and happened to glance into my rear view mirror. I noticed how tired and grim the person in the car behind me looked. I felt the stirring of compassion and a sense of connection […]
Read more "A Holy Joy"Have you ever noticed how good it feels to love? Whether we are spending time with our favorite people, cuddling with our four-footed beloveds, or doing something we just thoroughly enjoy doing, when we are loving, we are happy. Our hearts feel warm, our faces beam, our minds are calm. For those moments, when are […]
Read more "Loving Fearlessly"Have you ever tried baking your own bread? If not, I highly recommend it. Yes, it’s messy. And there’s often a lot of kneading involved. Your hands may get tired. You will certainly get flour everywhere. And it takes a lot of time, maybe all afternoon, if you do it right. But there’s quite a […]
Read more "Bread of Life"We started our worship this morning with the well-loved hymn, “Tell Me the Story of Jesus.” It is a fitting beginning to our Advent season, I think, reminding us of the awe-inspiring reality of God’s love and continual presence with us. The first verse says, Tell me the story of Jesus, write on my heart […]
Read more "Illumination"I hope you had an enjoyable Halloween and celebrated it in the way that felt right to you. Some people in recent years have stopped passing out candy—it’s expensive and with COVID there was a chance you could pass along more than Snickers bars. I have never been a big Halloween person myself, but I […]
Read more "The Way of Quaker Saints"Have you ever noticed how many different versions of the world there seem to be? There was the world you left behind for a little while when you slipped off to sleep last night. And the world you woke up to this morning as you stretched and opened your eyes. There’s the world we experience […]
Read more "Remaking the World"The idea for our message this week came when I was having a conversation with a friend at hospice about family patterns. As we talked, all of a sudden I understood some things in my own life differently. It was like someone had flipped a light switch: I thought of the way I was at […]
Read more "Patterns of Light"It’s so good to have you all with us on World Quaker Day! All over the world just now, on different continents and in different time zones, Quakers are gathering together and celebrating and sharing the essence of the growing faith that animates and unfolds our lives. If you are new to Quakerism, you might […]
Read more "God-with-Us: Stories of Faith"When you think back over the last week, how much of God’s light do you think you shared with others? How often did you feel it yourself? We rarely think of looking at life that way or gauging the success of our days based on how often we smiled, how many times we were kind, […]
Read more "Let Your Light Shine"
The Space between the Words 