This morning on the subway I was thinking of that passage from Matthew about how when you do something for “the least of these,” you do it for Jesus. I’d been wondering–praying–how I would know which of “the least of … Continue reading →
Ever been around one of those infectiously enthusiastic people who exclaims over the beauty of the day, no matter what the state of the weather, always finding something to praise? Ever wonder why the psalms are filled with one passage … Continue reading →
“Please, God, let him make the team.” I can’t tell you how many times when my two boys were young I would say some variation of this prayer: “Please, God, let him catch that ball when it comes to him … Continue reading →
Monday morning I sat down to my desk piled with books, files, notes, all screaming at me: “GET TO WORK, RICK! YOU ARE WAY BEHIND.” I logged on to the computer, girded for a backload of emails, all of them … Continue reading →
Every unanswered prayer feels like an email that I’ve read but haven’t responded to yet. Something pending. Something that still needs to get done. Something that weighs on my heart. A friend recently emailed me with a prayer request. Usually … Continue reading →
I’ve always loved visiting cemeteries. They don’t seem morbid or sad to me, with their rows of weather-beaten gravestones and marble angels ascending plinths and resting on tombs, but they feel like prayerful places. On Sunday I visited the old cemetery … Continue reading →
What is it about praying for your kids that you swing from wildly ambitious hopes to woefully mundane fears, never sticking to one or the other? At least that’s what happens to me. My two boys are great. Both in … Continue reading →
Someone’s going through a rough time, and they’ve asked for your prayers. You’ve said, “Sure, I’ll pray. Thanks for letting me know. I’ll be holding a good thought.” Holding a good thought feels like just the right thing to do; … Continue reading →
Some might say that Bob lost his battle to cancer, but I figure he won it. Big time. I don’t know why we use that phrase “battle with cancer” as though every treatment, every dose of chemo, every round of … Continue reading →
I found this gravestone of my eight-times-great-grandfather James Hamlin, 1636-1718, in an old cemetery on the island of Martha’s Vineyard. I like to think we got connected through prayer. I would not have known that I had such an ancestor … Continue reading →
