What is it like to be unfamiliar with the warm security of the love of a fellow human? I can’t say for sure, but I imagine it to be like an arctic tundra: cold, barren, non-nourishing, and no particular points of interest. Except worse. No hope of a home somewhere offering relief. Ever felt like that? I don’t know many, if any, people for whom this is truly accurate, but I’m afraid I know lots of people who have experienced this at some point, at least for a moment. When a lo

Go back in time, a couple of millenia with me: It is now the month of Tishri (Sept/Oct), year 3758 of the Hebrew calendar. From this point, only 200 years ago the Ming Dynasty was building the Great Wall of China, and the Mayan civilization created a calendar. On this tiny little blue green planet, third from the modest star we call the Sun, we and all the angels and demons direct our attention to a minuscule village in the hills of Galilee to find a young couple, recentl

50 year birthday. Thanksgiving. Christmas Season. One son in college and another with his first car. It has all piled up on me. As I was driving to meet a couple of new clients this morning, my mind was flooded with memories. It was like watching an old 8mm film of my life, projected onto a white bed sheet hung from the mantle in the living room, only in my head, distracting me from the rainy day outside my jeep. I saw the mobile home on the southeast side of Monroe Louisiana

Christmas has come and gone. But even in the absence of Christmas: Emmanuel. God is with us. He doesn’t leave when the decorations come down, or the tree becomes a fish habitat, or even when the presents lose their newness. He remains, as He always has been and always will be. And its not just the 9 pound baby Jesus that persists. It is the Pantokrator. Χριστὸς Παντοκράτωρ. The Almighty. So if we mash the Christmas God – baby Jesus – with the Revelation God – the Almighty C

(An excerpt from “The Singer Trilogy” by Calvin Miller) The Father and his Troubadour sat down Upon the outer rim of space “And here, My Singer,” said Earthmaker, “is the crown of all my endless skies – the green, brown sphere of all my hopes.” He reached and took the round new planet down, and held it to His ear. “They’re crying, Troubadour,” he said. “They cry so hopelessly” He gave the little ball unto His Son, who also held it by His ear. “Year after weary year they all k

Imagine a happy, classic American family: two parents, Reagan and Roosevelt(Rosy for short) Washington, two kids, Liberty and Unity, and a dog and maybe a cat. Let’s go ahead and put a goldfish and a guppy in a tank on the bar between the kitchen and dining room. One kid is in dance and the other in softball and the parents have a good marriage: not blissful everyday but not looking to make any trades either. Everybody is ok, content, and living their “best life now.” They kn

Christmas Eve arrived as suddenly as did the Christmas season. The Washingtons had spent substantial amounts of money in an effort to buy good cheer for themselves and for Liberty, and the Harhashes, though they spent very little on decorations or gifts, were feeling the cheer of their fellowship with God and Douglass’ family and Unity. The group had found a small cave just outside of town, borrowed a few sheep, and after doing some research regarding the Church of the Nativi

Christmas always comes like a thief in the night for some and is dragged in and propped up around halloween by others. The difference may be the need or willingness or reluctance to express whatever joy, or lack thereof, that accompanies the holiday. That said, the Washingtons were not not feeling it but the members of the housechurch were. By this time, the Harhashes were aware of the guest living in their camper, and because they were convinced that Unity was neglected by R

She hardly caught an ounce of sleep the night before her alarm awakened her for her appointment. Reagan had taken the kids to school so that she could sleep in a little, both of them knowing sleep would be difficult due to nerves. After he returned home to pick her up, they loaded and got on the road pretty quickly. Nothing much to say. The drive to the clinic seemed infinite, but they finally pulled into the parking lot of a brick building with several store fronts, one of w

Final installment in a Christmas series beginning with NW1: After an evening of memories and laughter with family, M & J went to bed. Ms. Anne insisted that Mary take their bed, being “large with child,” and no one objected, at least out loud. She slept peacefully with the exception of one dream of the cross outside Jericho, which awakened her in a cold sweat. Once she fell back to sleep, she slept until a rooster crowed and she could hear voices and footsteps in the house. “

Part 7 in a Christmas series beginning with NW1 Waking up in Jericho, Mary and Joseph had the Mountains of Judea to the  South and West and the Jordan River valley from which they just came to the East and North. They just traveled basically the same route from the river that Joshua and their ancestors did before them. From the city, they could look across the Jordan to see Mount Pisgah and Mount Nebo, which was the closest Moses ever came to the Promised Land,  and they knew

Part 6 in a Christmas Series beginning with NW1: The sun was barely out when Mary was awakened by the baby’s kicking.  She said her morning prayers down at the river in the solitude, and then roused Joseph from a hard sleep. “I had a dream,” he said, “there were Roman soldiers and an elderly woman with her dog. The woman was being questioned about where a certain man was, and the soldiers were threatening to hurt the dog if she didn’t give them information. She refused and th

**This is part 5 of a series, beginning with Nativity Walk 1: As our young couple and their favorite donkey ambles along, the landscape slopes down to the river, flattens, and the trees fade into more of a desert terrain. The lack of shade wasn’t a problem in the morning hours, but by noon the sun was too warm for comfort, and there was no relief from it. “Why me, Joe? Why us? Not that I’m complaining – just amazed, humbled that He would choose us, of all the people in the wo

**This is part of a series, beginning with Nativity Walk 1: Walking into town with the sun setting to the right, Mary is itching to take off her sandals and top cloak, and Joseph’s stomach is growling so much it is distracting Mel’s attention from the rocky path. As they begin looking for a place to stay the night, Mary says aloud: “I am amazed that we are staying in the same town where Elijah lived. Do you think they know which house, or if it’s even still here? I never even

**This is part of a series, beginning with Nativity Walk 1: After several hours, M & J approach Salim.  After a meal in town and then a wash in the warmish springs of Aenon (where John the Baptist would be baptizing in several more years), they adjust their packs, rinse out their sandals and some of their clothes, and push on. With the leaves of the willows and pistachio trees along the Jordan changing to their fall colors, and the bougainvillea still flowering, the path was

**This is part of a series, beginning with Nativity Walk 1: “Joe, did you hear that?” “Hmm mmm..” “Joe – I heard something. Wake up.” “It’s not even light yet – go back to sleep – we’re fine.” Mary cracked open the door and peered out into the pre-dawn blackness of the roman settlement. She was accustomed to the sounds of horses, goats, chickens, dogs and other domestic animals in Nazareth, but this was different. A growl – a roar even. Something wild. Awake now, Joseph conso

Go back in time, a couple of millenia with me:  It is the month of Tishri (Sept/Oct), year 3758 of the Hebrew calendar.  200 years ago the Ming Dynasty was building the Great Wall of China, and the Mayan civilization created a calendar.   On this tiny little blue green planet, third from the modest star we call the Sun, we and all the angels and demons direct our attention to a minuscule village in the hills of Galilee to find a young couple, recently engaged, stressed in the