Buttercups in Bloom

Last night I received a text from my mom ' be sure to look at the moon.' I was grateful that she reminded me to check out the super moon and all of this glory.  Looking at moons isn't new to us.  My parents encouraged me to spread my wings and so I left the nest to attend college 5 hours away from home in the deep south. I think college was where I first realized the fullness of racial tension.  I'd grown up being part of a school system that bussed their students across town to integrate students.  I'd been the minority for most of my school aged life.  I had been part of a community of friends that didn't see the color of anyone's skin, we didn't care which neighborhood you lived in or what kind of car you drove (we were just lucky to have a car at all to drive).  We danced together...we laughed together...we cried together.....we hated assignments together....we worked on homecoming floats together....we celebrated birthdays together....we stood u

Orange, yellow, red and green surround me this evening. The second Saturday of the month always rolls around a bit quicker than I want. The second Saturday of every month is always filled with a dread of all the work that lie ahead and yet a joy of all that is to come. The second Saturday of every month I step into our church building and am in awe of the persons that fill the pews, hallways and second floor. Our building is filled with families from our county (depending on the data it's the poorest to the third poorest county in the state of Tennessee), students from a local private school, university students from a prestigious private school, professors from the university, retirees and their grandchildren that live within our community and members of Morton Memorial UMC. Every inch of our space is used...pallets of food, bags of produce, carts used to transport the food to the cars. Today I did not want to be there. I'm suffering with bronchitis and on any

I've been thinking about steps a great deal today. Currently my fitbit tells me that I've walked 13,642 steps since I put it on this morning just before breakfast. While I have been thinking about the physical steps that we've been taking each day today I was thinking about steps on a very different level. We began our morning sitting on the Southern Steps of the Temple Mount.  The steps are the steps that pilgrims from the southern end would have terversed in order to enter the top of the Temple Mount. The view is breathtaking.  But something happened on the steps this morning that bothered me and clung to me for the remainder of the day.  The four of us were sitting, reading our Bibles, walking through the reflection questions that I had crafted for this holy space and another large group came and seem to overtake the space without any regard for the time of prayer that we were having.  Sharing space isn't/was't the problem because here in the Land of the Ho

"Enter his gates with thanksgiving and his courts with praise; give thanks to him and praise his name."  Psalm 100:4 We awoke to the stready flow of movement this morning. The click and clack of shoes hitting the pavement as people made their way to and from work. Cars below us giving their short beeps to move the car in front of them along or to jump into the roundabout where each car can barely put a sheet of paper between each bumper. The solitude of the Galilee behind us. Deliberately and slowly we blessed our food and gave thanks for the journey that we had traveled. We were not yet ready for the hustle and bustle of the city but our home was calling.  Climbing down the large stone steps we found our place in the morning shade.  We sat, we gave thanks once again and we entered the Holy City with reverence. It was a quiet and harsh day for our souls.  The push and the pull of the city was  a bit overwhelming. All senses were on overload as we walked the narrow

In the thin line between darkness ending and light coming I found myself awake. The air was cool. The pathway lit by the dim glow of lamp post along the way. The bricks beneath my shoes ever so damp. The glow of the Sea's cities stretched out before me. The quite lap of the waves of a swimmer in the Sea of Galilee below me. The breeze ever so gentle. The rooster crowing. The birds awakening in song. The thin line between the that which has past and that which is before me was present. There before me was the passing of one day and the new mercies of yet another day stretched it's arms around me.  The horizon filled moved from darkness into a blue, fading into a purple and exploding in a vibrant pink.  The rays felt as if were reaching out to envelope me, wrapping it's arms around me in a giant hug proclaiming, come my child, come find rest in the day before you, bread for the journey and the crashing of my love upon you. I sat listening. I let the breeze wash

In the thin line between darkness ending and light coming I found myself awake. The air was cool. The pathway lit by the dim glow of lamp post along the way. The bricks beneath my shoes ever so damp. The glow of the Sea's cities stretched out before me. The quite lap of the waves of a swimmer in the Sea of Galilee below me. The breeze ever so gentle. The rooster crowing. The birds awakening in song. The thin line between the that which has past and that which is before me was present. There before me was the passing of one day and the new mercies of yet another day stretched it's arms around me.  The horizon filled moved from darkness into a blue, fading into a purple and exploding in a vibrant pink.  The rays felt as if were reaching out to envelope me, wrapping it's arms around me in a giant hug proclaiming, come my child, come find rest in the day before you, bread for the journey and the crashing of my love upon you. I sat listening. I let the breeze wash

Let's face it we hate having to detour.  We hate not being able to take the fastest way possible to our destination.  A sense of dread rises about the time that will be wasted. We focus on the inconvenience of taking having to go out of our way. Today was a go out of our way kind of day.  The sun is bright as we begin to climb mount Arbel.  From the mountain we can turn around and see the way in which we have come.  We are proud of our past and can see our destination, the beautiful stunning Sea of Galilee. Standing atop this mountain is not the way Jesus would have traveled but the view is simply so stunning that the Jesus Trail takes you up and over this mountain.  The descent began and all was calm. The bouldering was much the same as yesterday but when we arrived at the half way point and approximately 45 minutes from the valley we simply had to turn around.  Not everyone in our group felt safe holding onto the wire rope that was embedded into the side of the mountain for h

If you are reading this for the first time in a bit, I want to share with you that I am on a journey in which we are walking from Nazareth to Galilee.  There are four of us and we span the ages; literally!  I'm 44, my roommate is 53, and the gentlemen are respectively 72 and 82.  These are men and women with whom I deeply love and respect in more ways that I can begin to speak. Today we were walking from Lavi to Arbel. The sky is blue; haze fills the air daring it to drop even an ounce of rain. The sun shining through the clouds touching the ground ever so gently. The ground is brown (or golden as they would say), dotted with the green of olive trees, waste high bushes. The panoramic view leads the eye from one hill to the next, each one shooting out of the ground as if to shout hello, you are welcomed here! Boulders encase us within the valley. We are headed up to the Horns of Hattin, across the valley and back up to the Arbel. The view was stunning.  From standing atop

Have you ever had a day where all you could do was to keep moving through the task that were before you?   Have you ever wondered if those days are ever going to lead you to the place where you truly long to be? Today as we began climbing our way out of the city of Cana where Jesus performed his first miracle of changing the water into wine the sun was already high above us. The steep climb out of the city led us to a summit that overlooked another village sitting high upon another hill.  It is true that 'a city on a hill cannot be hidden' because when each summit allow you span the horizon to see the next village rising out of the hill. After we made the summit of Cana, we began to drop into the valley to step upon the Roman Road.  We quickly began stepping upon rock after rock.  Rocks of all sizes and shapes and simply making our way on the road.  There were moments when the rise was steep and we walked slow and steady but honestly the majority of the trail today w

The dark of night is strange.  If all is well within your soul, the darkness of the night seems to pass quickly as you fall into a deep slumber. It is then that you can awake refreshed and sing "it is well with my soul."   The darkness of the night can also perpetuate a restlessness within; allowing your mind to run to and fro trying to catch that thing that eludes your and keeps running further and further away.   I must say that for two nights a deep slumber has eluded me.  It started on the plane ride over to Israel.  I literally did not sleep the entire 10 hours we were on the plane.  Oh believe me I tried!  I took a natural supplement to help settled me down, turned on my music, closed my eyes and tried to will myself to sleep.  It did not happen.  Then last night on our first night in the country, I found myself wide awake at 3:00am.  I tried again to will myself back to sleep.  I concentrated on my breathing, took a drink of water, spent time praying over so

During high school our family structure changed.  My parents separated and eventually divorced.  It was a difficult journey.  In the midst of it all, I had a mentor in faith give me a wooden cross. The cross had a tiny hole where a piece of leather was threaded through it so that it could be worn as a necklace, hung from the rearview mirror or placed on a peg on the wall.  I carried the cross with me; it was in my backpack or in my purse or hung on my car rearview mirror.  It was a constant reminder that while the journey might be difficult, I was not alone. I had someone in my corner. I had someone who loved me. I had someone cheering me on. I had someone to call in the middle of the night that would just listen to my heart's cry. I had a Jesus that loved me as far as the east is from the west. I had a Jesus that was going to light the way for me in the darkness. I had a Jesus that was going to put his arms around me and carry me when I didn't feel as though I could ta

There is a place on I-24 south that I love, it is few miles west of Exit 127.   In this particular spot the mountains wrap their arms around you from the north to the south as you drive into the bottom of the plateau.  I don't care how many times I make the trek home there is something that catches in my throat that allows me to say; these are my mountains and these are my people. Tonight the sun was setting ever so gently creating a ray of light on upon the far north side of the mountain, off to my left.    The pink hue was so light that you can barely see it and yet it was there reminding us that the cycles of life that are always before us. I spent my day sitting alongside hundreds of people who had gathered to celebrate a man who had impacted their faith, encouraged them to be leaders, challenged them to be better at their jobs, set a passion within their soul to do something outside of the box.  As I entered the worship space, I found myself in the in-between.  Not in a ba

I've been thinking about tribes lately. Tribes are communities of families (blood relatives) that are linked together through social, economic and/or religious commonalities.  Tribes consist of the people we choose to link ourselves with to build something greater; to conquer injustices, and to stand shoulder to shoulder with in times of trouble, heartache and celebration. These are the people who lift us up when we cannot go any farther on the path. Tribe members speak to the truth to us when, even if it hurts but then pours love into our being so that we walk in the hope that new beginnings are possible.  Our tribe are the people who are across the table from us when we celebrate life's most important events. Tribes are important. I am fortunate to have a tribe. My tribe offers to take time out of their schedules to make a two-hour round trip  and then sit for another hour and a half in order to allow my teenager to be part of a very specific academic resource that is

It's award season. Kids all across the country are walking across the stages in their school cafeteria or auditorium. Students are listening intently for their names to be called for those coveted awards of highest grade in each subject area, citizenship, best athlete and the list goes on and on.   These things should be recognized and celebrated because they are grand accomplishments. Social media is filled with smiles of these wonderful students and proud parents.  It is good to see kids accomplishing task and being celebrated for their hard work.  I believe in celebrating! There is a flip side to award season.  The flip side is that pictures cannot capture the kids who are sitting on the stage ever so patiently but never hear their name called for an award.   Students who worked hard and achieved much. Here's what the award ceremony cannot reveal. The girls and boys that are all dressed up, with their legs crossed properly and hands sitting ever so gently in their

"I am so full." How many times have you said this as you pushed yourself away from the table? We've come to think of fullness as a physical response of partaking in eating too much food all at once.   Even though I had dinner hours ago, as I sit in the comfort of my home; looking out of the french doors onto the porch that is illuminated by solar lights I am thinking I am so full and it has nothing to do with food. I am so full. I am full of thanksgiving. There is a deep thankfulness within me tonight.  I have a friend who is quiet, so sensitive towards the needs of others that she always sees what others do not. She is a person of joy, when she comes into the room it seriously lights up with laughter and goodness.  My friend is not afraid of a challenge and always encourages others to rise to the challenge of accomplishing the things they thought were impossible. This very special person that I am talking about is someone that has made an imprint u

Recently I increased my normal 3 mile hike to a 4 mile hike.  Saturday was is a beautiful day and I knew I wanted to get outside and enjoy every minute.  I started my hike a bit later in the day than I had hoped but I didn't really care because I had enjoyed all that the unfolded within the morning hours. I got out of my car, put my earbuds in, turned my app on to track my trail and mileage and got out my hiking poles.  Off I went, well sort of.  I got out of the parking lot to almost to the trailhead  and had to return to the car because I had on my glasses.  I'm far-sided and don't ever hike in my glasses because of my of trifocal lens...if you have ever hiked in trifocals you will totally get what I'm saying! So back to the car I went.   I didn't let returning to the car bother me because the sun shining, the wind was gently blowing and the trail was before me. I've been struggling with shin splits (before you tell me I need to do more stretching; belie

An inner calling. A design that you cannot ignore. An acceptance. Telling your story in relationship to God's story Affirmation       Encouragement            Doubt                 Fear                       Disappointment                               Calling                                         Design                                                 Acceptance                                                      Confidence in who we are designed to be            Our stories of standing before you each week as we preach and teach do not come as easy as you might think.  Our lives are not as put together as you might believe. Our personal stories of standing before you are filled with a movements that you rarely get a chance to fully see and understand.  Before we adorn our robes, places the stoles upon our shoulders and stand in the pulpit we must discern this inner desire to serve, to share the good news that has the power to transform

As you can see from the 'about me' info to the right of this blog that I'm someone who holds all things very close.  I have always hated asking for help.  I mean I really hate it.  I hate asking for help because I don't want others to pity me.  I don't want them to try to fix the thing that I might be currently wrestling with.  I don't want someone hovering over me asking me if I'm Ok or if the situation is getting better.  Just like everyone else, I simply don't want to ask for help because keeping my pride in tack is more important than opening myself to others and leaning on them for assistance. In these past several months I've been learning a lot letting your guard down and saying "I need help." I'm not gonna' lie, the journey of letting your guard down has been a steep climb and while it might feel like the path has leveled out, it has not. I have to say that I haven't been doing the heavy lifting in this journey.  T

As I write this my earbuds are filled with hymns that I know by heart.  The music is slow and reflective forcing me to hear the songs in greater depth.  There is this quiet voice singing 'oh praise him, oh praise.  Alleluia....Alleluia....Alleluia.' This hymn brings me to the scripture that I was to preach this morning. The scripture is Nehemiah 8. I'm not going lie, I love Nehemiah.  He is an unsung layperson within our story of faith. He had this uncanny way of pulling his community together. He was a cheerleader when those around him were broken and weary from the stones that lie around them reminding them every day that they had been defeated. The broken wall reminded them that they were vulnerable to their enemy.  The broken wall made the community question who they were in their midst of their faith.  The crumbled stones left their minds weary and unable to make decisions. The shattered wall left them wondering about their future.  The dust of the stones