Buttercups in Bloom

The holidays are an interesting thing.  They create stress and joy all at the same time. They bring persons together that might not otherwise have the opportunity to come together.  In the midst of it all, there is always the pressure to meet, greet and be a part of the holiday cheer. While the holidays are officially over, the visits to friends and family continue for many.  The visits bring about what a good friend calls "grouping up".  "Grouping up" consist of family (or friends) coming together and piling into a space and existing together.  The interesting thing that occurs in 'grouping up' is that everyone's personal space is stretched just a bit.  We live in a culture in which persons have their own rooms and in some cases even their own bathrooms.  We are a custom to thinking of our selves in terms of bedtime schedules, food schedules (as well as likes and dislikes), where we want to go or what we want to do. It challenges our own family tradit

Each day as we make our way to school we come up and over a hill before turning onto "Vietnam Veterans Blvd".  Over the past several years we have had our share of Contributor  vendors.  With each vendor that we have formed sort of  bond with them. Often giving them a dollar donation without taking the paper. There have been plenty of times that we have not had the dollar bill to purchase a paper and usually Emma has something to say about us not stopping. Our most recent vendors name is Andrew.  He is a younger gentlemen that is friendly, willing to strike up a conversation and takes great pride in himself and the way he speaks to everyone.  One day I simply realized that he was probably hungry so I took the snack I had packed for the day and simply handed it to him.   Since then Emma has commented about packing extra snacks for him. We have both commented about him needing something warm to drink. It has been so deep in Emma's mind that asked me repeatedly to purcha

I haven't journaled about my trip to the Holy Lands but one of the things that happened was a sense of prayer.  It actually started a little over a month before I left.  I had three different 'events' that occurred that were all leading to the same conclusion, that I had to find a way to come to God.  I had to find a way of reconnecting to the Holiness that awaits me every single day.  I also knew that I had to bring the community of faith together, to lift up our leaders....the people within our community.....lift up the hurt and brokenness....the worries....fears and anxieties.....to celebrate and proclaim the joys...the moments of healing that are upon us and given to us. I knew that was what I being asked to do.  I have been a part of prayer services in the past and I simply didn't want to settle for going through the list of names on the back of the bulletin.  I wanted to be real, I wanted to meet the needs and speak them out loud! As we walked through the holi

To refresh means:  "to revive...to give new freshness or brightness..to restore and to fill up again".   This summer's heat has been excruciating!  There have been plenty of days where just trying to get the car cooled has been a challenge.  The other day was another day in the low 90's and just being outside literally took my breath.  In the midst of the heat I had the privilege of walking into a local  restaurant to sit at a table with 4 persons in whom I love and respect.  As always the conversation was filled with laughter, grace, thought provoking questions and love. Each person adding a moment of refreshment to my life. I am honored to sit with each of them every single month.  I know that as I sit with them that they rivive my passion for serving God in a personal journey; not just in leadership for the church.   I am always amazed and in awe of my friend TW as he speaks with honesty and compassion. He simply has a way of talking that speaks the tr

God works in amazing ways.  One day last week I had the privilege of watching the sun rise over the trees painting the sky with  beautiful hues of pink, gold and purple.  As I looked into the sky, I took a deep breath and gave thanks for being apart of something so amazing.  That night in a rare twist of events as I drove home I witnessed the sun stretching across the horizon and watched as the light brought forth a different color of red and orange.  I'm not sure that I have ever seen the beauty painted across the horizon twice in one day.   In the midst of craziness of life the awe of experiencing a breathtaking sunrise and sunset in one day seemed to fade.  The calmness and the hope that each of those sceneries brought into my life faded under the pressure of trying to do the everyday.  Today as I made a quick scroll through the ever changing Facebook status I noticed that someone had asked a simple question: what has given you a bit of hope lately.   I realized that the s

Today I awoke a bit early so that I could sit in the silence of the morning.  Today is a day of celebration!  It may sound silly but we have a tradition in our home that we set aside a day at the end of each summer to mark the beginning of something new.  Every year we take the opportunity to spend an entire day together as a family.  The day is set aside to do one thing, celebrate!! Yes we celebrate the goodness that we've had over the summer but more importantly we celebrate the beginning of another year of school.  The beginning of school is seen as an opportunity to remind us to be open to learning and exploring in ways that we have not experienced before. It's the opportunity to open ourselves to new relationships and take a stand for the things that we hold dear.  It is also a day of celebrating E in all the things that she has accomplished in the past year.  I'm not talking about the 'things or the awards' but who she is becoming. Yes, today is a today of

It hits about this time every year; that the unscheduled days of summer fly by all to quickly.  Two weeks from now our nights will already be filled with homework, preparing for the weekly spelling test as well as the dreaded math facts timed quizzes, getting to bed on time ,trying to get up in the morning to get to the bus on time!  Yes, the unscheduled nights of simply deciding to the pool and not having dinner until 7:30 or so are quickly coming to an end.   I always want to push back on time and claim more days of simply being outside on the back porch trying to catch lighting bugs, playing the wii until we can't jump or dance any longer, and swimming until we are completely water logged . I always want just a bit more.   A bit more of the moments where I can truly enjoy Emma being a child with no worries in the world. Today while I write my sermon, I am torn. I wonder if we have played enough....have we laughed loudly enough....have we danced our hearts out in the living roo

When Emma was four and about to begin Pre-K we decided to take a family day trip to Beach Bend Amusement Park to celebrate the end of summer and the beginning of a new adventure called school!  Every summer since then we've spent a day at an amusement park riding rides and laughing with one another (often taking close friends with us).  This year we upped the ante taking three days for thrills and adventure at Kings Island.  Emma is tall enough to ride every ride in the park so needless to say we were pumped!  We were ready for the adventure from the moment we walked in the Park.  We immediately jumped on the smaller rides eventually moving to the bigger, more serious rides with twist and turns.  We were laughing, screaming and pushing ourselves to ride in the front car of the rides.  But then it happened, we jumped on a ride and the reality of fear fell upon Emma.  Firehawk is literally unlike any other ride I have ever been on.  You stand up (ok so I've done that before) th

Today as my family and I prepared to leave on our summer vacation (vaca as we like to call it) there was an excitement in the air.  We could not wait to get on the road and head towards our destination. This year our family vacation is filled with adventure and amusement as we spend the next several days at Kings Island. Kings Island is a mere 5 hours north of our home and normally a breeze to travel to.  Today the journey was a bit different.  There were several points along our way in which we encountered traffic from work being done on the pavement.  We found ourselves crawling along not being able to cover very many miles.  I tried to distract myself my reading a new book but I found I was merely getting irritated at the delay.  I wanted to cover more ground, I wanted to move faster; I wanted to get to our destination. I do not know why I was in such a hurry; there was nothing on our agenda but getting to our hotel.   We always carry maps (yes, old fashion paper maps that you ha

Last night as the sun fell behind the horizon Emma was ready to catch lighting bugs.  I found a mason jar and of course punched holes in the top.  It was truly a delight to watching her run through the yard.  She was dressed in her night gown, flip flops and a sock monkey hat (yes, a sock monkey hat that we purchased earlier in the day and she fell in love with it. Even as I write this on Saturday morning she is sitting with her new favorite hat on her head).  The sight of her running through the yard after the fire flies made my heart sing. Catching fire files isn't as easy as I remember but all at once we both began laughing at the sight of the two of us running through the yard.  Laughing at one another, laughing at the lighting bugs that seem to be out smarting us and simply laughing because we were enjoying the simplicity of the night.  In the midst of our fast paced, scheduled filled world how often do we really sit back and enjoy the simplicity that surrounds us?  How o

Over the past several weeks I have been conflicted about a situation.  I simply did not see the situation the same as others.  I wondered if there was something I was missing or if I were to stand my ground and give voice to a different opinion.  As the weeks passed I continued to seek the Holy One asking for the path that I needed to take to be illuminated.  As in many situations that each of us encounter I longed to have the path revealed and yet it eluded me. Then the other night in the midst of a very heated conversation something began to happen that opened my heart and mind. I heard two very important questions floating to the surface. Questions that are the core of who I claim to be. The first question that came to me was "who do you say that I am?"  If I am one that believes that Jesus is one that always redeems; then I must be willing to offer redemption even when I do not fully understand or agree with the actions and responses of another.  If I believe Jesus to

Just recently I had the opportunity to spend some quality time with a dear friend of mine.  As my friend stayed with our family for several days he made some keen observations.  After several days of listening and watching me, my friend took a deep breath and pointed out something very important to me.  My friend calmly and lovingly said; do you realize how much you put yourself down?  He continued by saying; I have watched and listened to you and I am tired of putting yourself down. I will not tolerate you doing that from this point forward.  You are more than you give yourself credit for.  I listened with an open heart and was stunned. I was is awe that someone could see through me and see the self doubt that lives deep within me.  I have always had a sense of confidence when it came to my path as a leader within the church but in so many other areas I doubt my abilities. I compare myself to others and so often see the places I have missed the mark. Throughout this Holy Week, I

On Ash Wednesday the sanctuary was filled with dry, parched branches and twigs.  Since then each week has brought about different shades of green to represent the growth that is upon us. We've moved from the dry branches to branches that have budded into flowers and are unfolding into full leaves.  This past Sunday as a branch with buds barely opening were placed on the pulpit I simply smiled.  I loved the color that was before me.  I loved the sense of life that I was standing in the midst of.  I absolutely loved that the branch held life and was coming into it's own. Then it happened.... I looked down in the middle of the second service and noticed that the blossom on the tree branch was already withering.  The buds that were so full a few hours before were fading.  I was stunned by the stark difference in just a few hours and then I realized something very important.  The branches were no longer attached to the very thing that provided security for their well being...t

In the past couple of weeks I have been thinking about walls. Yes, walls.    Last week I spent time at a beautiful place called Beersheba Springs Assembly. It is one of our United Methodist campgrounds in the amazing mountains of the Cumberland Plateau.  I know that as I make the steady drive up the mountain that my cell coverage begins to drop.  This  year as I arrived 'on the mountain' I was pleasantly surprised to find that my cell coverage wasn't completely lost.   We could text and make phone calls without having to stand at the overlook and without having to hold our phones in a particular place.  It was a wonderful thing to be connected.  And then it happened, I walked into our main building and lost all coverage.  At first I was frustrated that when I walked into a particular place my cell coverage would immediately drop. Yet, as our time 'on the mountain' continued something strange began to come to me.  I realized that the bricks that were keeping ou

Every 9 weeks our daughter's school gets a two week break.  It is always a welcomed time in our busy schedules.  The two weeks provide a time and space for us to simply be.  Yesterday as we prepared the house for the arrival of grandparents, our daughter Emma said "our breaks always make the days feel so long".  I immediately replied "yes they do when every single minute isn't scheduled or filled with something to do."  There is a joy in not having every single minute of the day scheduled or planned out.  It is refreshing to close the calendar, not be consumed with the next thing on a to-do list, not care if the phone is ringing and to enjoy the day as it comes.  Not being consumed with the schedule or list of the day brought forth a time of creativity for Emma and I.  We took the time to color outside the lines and be creative with chalk.  We created a mosaic of chalk art on our driveway.  We didn't care if the dust from the chalk moved from the pav

 Yesterday our sanctuary was transformed into a place where one could see and feel death.  It was transformed into a place where the parched and thirsty space could penetrate into every part of your being.  As I sat there watching our worship team transform the space I became transfixed on the smell and the feeling of death. I was drawn to the uncertainty that surrounded me. In the midst of sitting in the gray and dry space I suddenly began to see the darkness with new eyes.  For days I have been watching the bush (well it's more than a bush) outside my window.  The huge gray and dry blob outside my window seemed to be lifeless, and yet after sitting in our sanctuary I realized that the tree is anything but dead.  In the midst of the branches that would break easily there is a life that is hidden deep within. There is life waiting to be called forth.  It is waiting for just the right moment to make it's entry into the world and open to it's full bloom.  I believe that&#

This week our daughter was given a gift, 3 simple buttercups.  As I saw them sitting on our mantle in a simple vase I was immediately taken back to the fields of my childhood.  The fields of my grandparents where we would run freely and pick as many buttercups as we could possibly hold. Buttercups are simple and yet beautiful.  As they make their way out of the ground each year it is always the first sign of a new season...new life making its way into this world. The bright yellows and white dot the landscape and draw us in beckoning us to take a deep breath. Over the past several months I have wondered about blogging, about what it would be like to have a place to share my thoughts, to open myself to the world around me.  To allow persons to see a glimpse of me that they might not otherwise see.  I have been drawn to opening myself like the buttercups of the season...opening myself to something new.  I have no idea if the words that fall upon this page will reach anyone but my