We lost our beloved German Shepherd, Sarge, in March, before COVID hit. Rick’s heart ached for another dog. I wasn’t sure I could go through loving one and then losing another in 11-12 years. Needless to say, I gave in. We picked up “Ranger”, our all-black, fuzzy pup, along with instructions on diet. (I barely …
Over thirty years ago, when I first began writing Redeeming Love, I put three pictures on my bulletin board where I could see them as I worked. All three were of the same little girl; the first, a school picture of a pretty little 6-8 year old girl; the second, the same child, terrified and …
I can’t watch any more news about the horrific murder of George Floyd or about the protesters who have violently reacted by burning and looting. I need to hear more from the peaceful demonstrators who seek much-needed change, who address racial hatred with clarity and truth, who seek equal rights and equal justice for those …
As the shelter-in-place order has stretched from weeks into months, I’ve had more time to work in our vineyard. We have one hundred pinot noir grapevines, all planted thirty-plus years ago. When we moved in, the yard and vineyard needed a lot of TLC. In the beginning, someone had laid out a beautiful plan, but …
Mother’s Day is bittersweet for me because my mother went home to be with the Lord twenty-five years ago. We always knew my dad would not live a long life. He had his first heart attack at thirty-nine, and two open-heart surgeries. He used to joke and say the doctors should put a zipper in …
Having to limit my time outside the walls of our home has had some benefits. We have gone through cabinets and closets inside the house and garage. As soon as stores open, Rick will be dropping off sacks of donations to our favorite ministries, and we’ll be wandering the mall just to be around people …
A favorite scripture of mine is Romans 8:28: “All things work together for good for those who love God and are called according to His purpose.” Of course, we don’t always recognize those good things when we are going through trials and crises. It often takes time and wisdom brought through life experiences for us …
Life on this earth is always fraught with difficulties, crises, uncertainty. This is nothing new, and wars (whether nation against nation or against a virus) will continue until Jesus comes again. As we shelter-in-place, we do not need to be afraid. While we practice social distancing, we can stay in touch through social media, telephone …
The Corona Virus was already spreading when Rick and I were returning from a trip to South Africa. (I hope to tell you more about our visit to that beautiful country soon.) We transited London’s immense Heathrow airport, had a five-hour layover, then caught a long flight to San Francisco, followed by a two-hour ride …
My daughter, Shannon, pointed out a “Gift to God” section in the Tyndale Life Application Bible Commentary on the book of Acts (page 172) on the excuses we’ve all made at times – and may continue to do so – for not helping the poor and needy. Here are eight of the most common excuses …