Some years ago, my dad was on a tour of the Holy Land with a group of Pastors. He had been on several occasions before, but this one was to help train this group on how to personally lead a tour in this Biblical region of the world. They saw all sorts of things. The empty tomb. The Jordan River. The Temple Mount. The Dead … Read More
Walking From Peace to Peace
Are you going through something right now and feel like you’re rocking back and forth with fear, anxiety, butterflies, and maybe a touch or two of depression? You aren’t alone. I think even the most “well-kept-together” of us fall into that category. And not just once. It happens time and time again. We all have a choice when those dreaded … Read More
When The News Cameras Have Moved Past: Rebuilding Rwanda 20 Years Later
It’s been ten years, nearly eleven since the most profound loss of my life occurred: my dad died of cancer. Not a day in my life has gone by that has not been changed by the hours of the six month and two days that led to that final breath he drew. It’s been twenty years exactly since the Hutu … Read More
Water, Water, Everywhere But Not a Drop to Drink
Well, I failed. I had the date for “World Water Day” in my mind as March 28th. It was in fact, March 22nd, and that day has passed. I’ve been mulling it over in my mind and with sparse internet during the day, I frankly thought I had more time. But do you know what? The world water crisis isn’t … Read More
To the Strained People of the World
How are your muscles today? Aching a bit from strain? What has you straining? Is it from grinding your teeth at night because that’s how your body inadvertently reacts to stress even as you sleep? Is it from carrying that very attached baby of yours everywhere you go even as you work? Is it from hunching over mounds of paperwork as … Read More
Shaken, But Not Stirred.
A few days ago, I was in Brooklyn, New York sitting in the auditorium of one of the most illustrious churches in the country- The Brooklyn Tabernacle. Words cannot properly describe how meaningful that service was to me, just two days after I turned 30. But I will tell you that it was right up there with the Kenyan worship … Read More
10 Things I Learned in my 20’s
Well, it’s finally here: the dreaded last day of my 20’s. As much as I would like to deem tomorrow “The 2nd Annual Anniversary of My 29th Birthday”, I can’t. When the clock moves into the 2:00AM hour, while I sleep, I will turn 30. (I think I need a piece of chocolate.) As hard as the idea of starting … Read More
Writing on the Walls
Did you ever make a time capsule as a kid? I remember doing one at my school. I don’t remember anything that went into it or when it was to be opened, but I remember thinking about how awesome it would be for someone to find it some day. Now that I’m a grown-up, I live in an old Virginian … Read More
The Art of Writing a Letter
I’ve written all sorts of letters throughout my life. Letters to my parents from camp, postcards with short letters to my grandparents from vacations, entries in my diaries, cards filled with letters of encouragement to those having a bad day or suffering in a particular way, emails with updates on life with pen pals and old friends, letters of complaint … Read More
How to Journey Well
I can hardly believe that it has been three years since my shoes collected dust from the red dirt roads of Kenya. The two weeks my husband and I spent there will make for a lifetime of lessons and stories bound to live far beyond our own existence on this earth. So many times, my mind travels unrestricted by … Read More