Last night I had this dream that I was back in college in my single days, and these two guys liked me. In my dream, I really liked being liked. I liked the feeling of being pursued and sought after and chased and all that. And when I woke up, I felt a little sad and kinda confused because here I am this very happily married girl, and sometimes I still dream about that kind of thing. Later, when Brent got up and stumbled down the stairs with his flannel pajamas and hoodie and asked to sit by me on the couch, and share my blanket, I told him about my dream. I told him how I love being married to him and being thoroughly and completely loved but sometimes I miss that mysterious part, where you don't really know each other that well yet, and it still feels tingly when you're touched or [...]

Hi, everybody. My name is brudder. Well, actually, my name is lil' britches but you can call me brudder. My mom feeds me too many sweet potatoes. That's why my nose is nearly orange. Did you know there's still snow at my house? This is a picture of the sparkly snow. I wrote a poem. I called it "Snow." You can print it out and hang it on your fridge if you want. It goes like this: Snow Why are you still here? Yes, I see the way you sparkle. I see the way you shine. You look nice and all, But you really should go Snow. This is my Dad and my big brudder. My Mom thinks they're cute with their coordinating shirts. But, my brudder doesn't like to be called cute. He just wants to be called cool. Not cute. Not beautiful. Not even handsome, really. Just cool. Because he said "cool[...]

The girl with the paint smear on her forehead ran, like some wild child, like someone without a care in the world. Like someone utterly free. So, her momma turned to see. To see that light in her eyes and the way it shines out through her smile and punctuates her cheeks. And the boy, he ran too. Like a crazy hooligan, streaking through the hallway, tearing through the kitchen, and all for sheer pleasure. Nothing else. And that momma of theirs was captivated. She couldn't stop watching how the fully alive enjoy just living. She'd read about the dying. What they had to say. How they wished the living ones would just slow down and really feel their lives. She'd watched a dying man express how intensely happy he was when he heard the pitter patter of his little girl's feet comi[...]

Some days I walk around feeling inconsolably lonely. And I always think that it's strange. Because I have these people around me that love me well and love me deep and that I love immensely. Namely, my husband and kids. And I've got a fair amount of friends. And a cell phone and email and facebook to keep up with the ones I can't see face to face, much. But, still, I go through these phases of just feeling so lonesome. I can be smack dab in the middle of all the folks I love and yet, there's this sadness, this feeling that something isn't quite right. That somehow I'm not complete or that I'm not at home. And when I try to put my finger on it, I find that I'm ravishingly hungry for Someone else. Someone other. Like, I'm starved for God. I know. It's strange. And when I read the B[...]

Someday you might wake up and find it hard to love. You know, hard to love those folks right there in your life. In your lap. Or the ones from your past that are miles away. And you may not know what to do about that. Because you know you ought to love. And you know that love heals things and transforms circumstances and love can change people, but you might look inside that heart of yours and notice that the tank is dry. And you may not know where to go for replenishing. There is a well where you can draw from endless springs. There is a God with a heart so full that it overflows and He knows how to pour love into empty, dried up places. But, you'll have to go to Him. And it'll do you good to tell Him that you just don't have what it takes to love. Or to forgive. Or to forbea[...]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TSNyQnnOvVY I want you to listen to this song. Like, the whole thing. It's important that you listen to the whole entire thing. (Just ignore the cheesy graphics, okay? Close your eyes or something.) Then, I want you to think about church. Like, what it is and what it isn't. Church isn't a building where we all go and sit in rows and listen to a leader talking and then sing some songs and head home. Church isn't potluck. Church isn't putting on our Sunday best and hoping everybody thinks we look good and that we have it all together. Church isn't congregating with a bunch of people who look the same as us and think the same as us so we'll feel good about us. But, church is all the Jesus-followers in the whole world spread out and shin[...]

People keep asking me how it's going with three kiddos, all of them younger than five. They always ask with a sort of tenderness, because some of them are older momma's and they remember these days and some of them aren't momma's yet, so they want to know, but they sort of cock their head and wait for my answer. And I wonder if they're trying to gauge and see if they'll be okay, you know, down the road. I tell them I'm doing good. Just so good. Because I am. Being a momma to me has been sheer joy. All three times. And I know Samuel is still little but he's not exactly sleeping through the night yet, so I'm tired, yes, but I didn't know that I would be okay being tired. I was the girl who always thought I needed 8-10 hours of sleep every night, and then a nice little cat nap in the after[...]

When you live in the north-country, snow becomes your way of life for about three months out of the year. I've enjoyed all the sparkle and the bright white out in the yard. But, there have been these moments when I've wondered what the snow is actually good for. So, the other day, I sat at the kitchen table as the kids munched on french toast and sipped their chocky milk and, out of curiosity, I opened up my Bible and looked for some verses about snow. I found a few. A few delightful verses. For one thing, I learned that God's word is like snow. Because when God sends snow, it goes down to the earth and accomplishes His purpose. It melts and waters the ground so that little green shoots push up from the dirt. And those little green shoots grow up and they provide seeds for th[...]

My Ma and Pa married each other on May 28th, 1969. That was forty-five years ago. They were recently asked to share their story with a big group of friends in order to encourage and give some hope. And couldn't we all use some hope? That's why I'm sharing this story of theirs here with you. We're all a bit battered and broken and it's hard being married and staying married, especially in this culture. So, whether you're married or not, hang on to this. It'll help. And thank you, Ma and Pa, for clinging to Jesus, Hope Himself, and for sticking together and being there for me. My dad's part of the story is italicized. They tag-teamed. Here goes: I grew up in a very loving, secure home.  My dad was a bi-vocational pastor. Mom stayed home and raised the kids.  We went to church a l[...]