Quiet in His Love

I am amazed at how quickly the last year and a half went by. I sometimes wonder how I meet each day knowing that the only way I'll see my dad is in a photo or a thought or a dream. I'll only hear him in my memories or dreams. It saddens me to think of all the opportunities that have gone by for my children to interact with their grandpa, for my mom to tell my dad a quote from the book she's reading, for me to hear his signature knock on our front door. Yet he is already home with his grandchildren, his father-in-law, his mother-in-law, and so very many others. He has seen things we struggle to imagine; he has joined the cloud of witnesses. He is now cheering, along with them, as the rest of us continue our race. Knowing that today was coming made me a bit sad. So this morning, rather spur of the moment, I decided to find ways to celebrate and honor my dad. The first way we honored him was by getting chocolate shakes - made with chocolate ice cream and chocolate syrup - the ...

" The Sun'll Come Out Tomorrow / Bet Your Bottom Dollar That Tomorrow There'll Be Sun..." How many of you know that song? Some of you now have the tune and the words stuck in your head. You are welcome. I am not confident in this moment that the sun will come out tomorrow...because tomorrow is my dad's birthday. His first birthday in Heaven. The first time we celebrate to honor his memory not to celebrate with him. Tomorrow, he would have turned 69. So young really. So much to give and share. Yet, tomorrow, instead of smiles and laughs and presents, there will be tears and stories and lasagna and green olives and chocolate cake and ice cream. The reality we have faced so many times over the last 10+ months will, yet again, sink in anew. Another first without my dad here in our presence. Starting with my mom's birthday last year, we have had to celebrate without my dad's smile, without his silly puns and antics, without his heartfelt compliments and encoura...

Freedom. That is what those in the United States celebrate on July 4th. Freedom. What is freedom? According to https://webstersdictionary1828.com/Dictionary/freedom , freedom is " A state of exemption from the power or control of another; liberty; exemption from slavery, servitude or confinement ." Are you seeking freedom from something in your life? Maybe this is the time to revolutionize your life and gain the freedom you need. Is something other than Christ controlling your life? Are you struggling with laziness, gluttony, anger, bitterness, an addiction? Is something in your life causing you to walk away from Christ instead of toward Him? There is freedom in Christ according to Galatians 5:1 (NIV): " It is for freedom that Christ has set us free. Stand firm, then, and do not let yourselves be burdened again by a yoke of slavery." The ESV says, " do not submit again to a yoke of slavery." Why do we so easily give into the yoke of slavery? Have you ever ...