This morning I read about the day Jesus was beaten to a bloody pulp and nailed to a splintery cross. He had all this power available to Him. I mean, He could have called for thousands of angels and they would have come and protected Him from all the bad guys. But He didn't. He didn't do that because Jesus didn't come to live a safe life. He actually came to die--that's why He let the bad guys win.And as His enemies were all crying out, "Crucify Him!", they said a very interesting thing. They said, "May His blood be upon us and on our children." (Matthew 27) And little did they know, but that is exactly what they needed. And that's precisely why Jesus let the bad guys win. This is what the cross is all about. Because the way that God would take sin-ravaged and sin-imprisoned souls and make [...]

The other day we were at this restaurant with Brent's parents and Gideon was sitting on his Grandpa's lap. I watched my little guy as he sat up on his Grandpa's knee, all sparkly-eyed and laughing and intensely enjoying himself. In that moment, I was never more happy. All of a sudden the world seemed safe and good and innocent and I sort of got lost in the moment as I watched the love between them. The older man enjoying the little guy. The little guy adoring the older guy. And me enjoying them both. Some moments get captured and you never really forget them. Like the time I was still living at home with my parents and we were all three out in the yard doing some yard work. Dad had taught me how to back up the mower with the trailer hitched to it, so I was getting lots of practice, ha[...]

We Americans have so much. Just so much. But, it doesn't fix the ache. That insatiable longing for something more, something better, something soul-satisfying. Perhaps all our wealth and success only magnify the ache. Because no matter how high we're able to climb the corporate ladder, or no matter how much stuff we accumulate, it's never quite good enough. A hundred folks could sing our praises and a thousand friends could load us up with accolades, but at the end of the day, we're still searching for that one more. That one more Facebook like. That one more Twitter follower. No matter how big the platform we stand on, it just doesn't remedy the deepest longing. That longing to be filled with something that satiates all the dry and empty places.And I think there are people who are terribl[...]

Last night, Hopey woke up in the wee, dark hours, woke me up out of cozy deep sleep and yelled that she needed her "other" blankey. She didn't exactly say it kind. She never does in the middle of the night. More like a demanding, belligerent tone. She needed her blankey, and she needed her "chocky" milk, and she needed to go potty. I just needed to sleep. So, I got up and huffed and puffed to her room and scratched around in the dark for her other blankey and told her to be quiet, in a not-so-sweet tone of voice and took her potty and angrily told her to stop crying. After all, I was helping her, wasn't I? Sheesh. Can't a mama get some gratefulness at three in the morning?As I bent down on the bathroom floor, pulling up her britches, frustrated that I had to lose some precious sleep, I fel[...]

Brent and I went on a date last night and we talked about our resolutions for the new year. He's good about asking me what my goals and dreams are. And then I remember to ask him. : )I told him that I want to love the world more, like the whole world, not just my little corner. I know that sounds broad and general, but it's because I don't really know what that looks like yet.  I started reading David Platt's book, Radical. (Warning, only read this book if you want a good kick in the pants.) It's written for Christians but it doesn't make Christians feel good about themselves at all. It sort of points out how most of American Christianity doesn't look or act a thing like Jesus.  Ouch. It hurts because it's true. We Westerners care a whole lot about comfort and security and we do[...]

Have you ever named a year? I've never done it. But, I've heard of it, how you can name your new year something that you hope you will become. I think I'd like to name this new year, "Brave."Brave because I'm not. Mostly, I'm not. Not when I turn on the news. Not when I think of my babes and the world that they'll grow up in. Not when I look at our country and think of all the debt and all the mess we're in. I'm just not all that brave. But, I've been learning how to trust God more. Because He's awful big. He's bigger than the world. So big, in fact, that He holds us in His hands. And He's been doing something in my heart, something new. So that when I hear about the shootings, and the sexual abuse and the slow stripping away of freedoms, I hear this voice and it's gentle but firm. "Maggie[...]

I've got these tangerines up on the sill. They're bright and ruddy in the afternoon light.When the sun bursts through and floods the kitchen sinkthey gleam. I sit down to rest and peel the soft, smooth skinand marvel at the God who made the tangerine.This perfect round plump of citrus juice.Wrapped up in ornamental white--a filigree.I think of how He could have made the world just shades of grey,and all the food flavorless and bland. We never would have known.But, He imbued it full of colors all ablaze and brilliant.Sunsets.Wildflowers.Kingfishers.Tangerines. And He packed this world full of flavors savory and sweet.He made my tongue to taste.My eyes to see. And some say in all this earth and the cosmos vastthere is no sign of Him. Not even a hint.But, He makes Himself known vivi[...]

It's been a beautiful year and we've been incredibly blessed. (Thank You, Lord!) And thank you, friends, for sharing life with us. We love you.

 There is a God who always ever was and He weaves His Story into our days. This same God who conducts the wind, who made the moss grow rampant beneath the maples, the One who fills up heaven, He also dwells here with us, in our one fleeting life. And these days, all these running together days, though chocked full of common, ordinary, seemingly insignificant moments, are not some erratic succession of events, a mere twenty four hours in which we plod along and aimlessly exist. No, these days, each and every one of them is brimfull of meaning and purpose. Today matters because the God who exists is alive and well and He is not confined to church houses or sacred assemblies, but He is found here in all the gritty, humdrum slices of life. He calls Himself the great I AM. Doesn't tha[...]