Tearing Down the Walls, Weeping to the Hymns, and Singing in the Rain

book of Nehemiah

This week some walls came-a-tumblin’ down. Inside the sanctuary of my church, we began a three day tear down—after 30 years of non-stop use, our church home is being remodeled, reworked, and being called The Restoration Project. A few hundred of us showed up with tools, axes, gloves and elbow grease, and the demolition began. Crowbars creaked planks apart, axes were wielded with aplomb, and lighting fixtures came down; the people of my church earnestly tackled the demolition just as earnestly as they have tackled missions trips and singing Continue Reading

Thanksgiving: The Ultimate Survival Technique

autum-leaves

It was Thanksgiving 1981, and since I was supposed to be thankful for what I had, I went down the list. I had: -A husband who’d just admitted to an ongoing affair    with a woman he wouldn’t give up. -A two month old son. -A completely uncertain future. -A body exhausted from stress, weeping  and nursing a newborn. -A broken, confused, disillusioned heart. -A mind ready to explode from the traffic going through it. -A holiday dinner to help prepare. -A charade to keep up in front of my family. Thankful? You're kidding, Continue Reading