Another Season of Isolation–SISU Sewn by Sister Love (Part 2)
Father, give us courage to change what must be altered, serenity to accept what cannot be helped, and the insight to know the one from the other. ~~ “The Serenity Prayer” by Reinhold Niebuhr In the upstairs landing of our family farm–the Heikkinen Estate–there’s a…
Another Season of Isolation–For Such a Time as This (Part 1)
And who knows but that you have come to royal position for such a time as this (Esther 4:14b–NIV)? She was far from royalty, though Esther was her name. Born on April 2, 1919 to Finnish immigrants in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan, Esther Karolina…
The Beginning
Once upon a time… And so begin many good stories. From those words until ‘The End,’ there’s character development, setting, plot–including foreshadowing, tension, climax and resolution–among other good story elements. From the day our daughter Allie joined our family in 2012 at the age of…
When We Don’t Know
Early on the first day of the week, while it was still dark, Mary Magdalene went to the tomb and saw that the stone had been removed from the entrance. So she came running to Simon Peter and the other disciple, the one Jesus loved, and said, “They have…
Lunge for Him
And a woman who had suffered from a flow of blood for twelve years and had spent all her living upon physicians, and could not be healed by anyone, came up behind Him and touched the fringe of His garment, and immediately her flow of…
He Holds Your Breath
“…the LORD God formed the man from the dust of the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and the man became a living being” (Genesis 2:7–NIV). ~~~~~~~~ “Just hold your breath and jump!” The daddy lovingly cheered on his frightened daughter….
Now I Lay My…
Cast all your anxiety on Him because He cares for you (I Peter 5:7–NIV). No–the title isn’t a typo, though I know what many might be thinking. Shouldn’t it be ‘Now I lay ME…’–as in the opening line of Joseph Addison’s famous prayer written in 1711? Now…
Just to Be Sure of You
He who dwells in the shelter of the Most High will rest in the shadow of the Almighty. I will say of the LORD, “He is my refuge and my fortress, my God, in whom I trust” (Psalms 90:1, 2–NIV). Stirring in the night, I searched the bed with my…
Every Shell Has a Story
I have this little drawer that, to me, is a treasure chest. Opening it, one will find a plethora of seashells in a variety of sizes and shapes and colors. No two are, in fact, alike, and no living thing remains–though each one once held…
His Umbrella Over Me Is Love
“… His banner over me is love” (Song of Songs 2:4b–NIV). The other day, my dear husband purchased something for me. It was a dreary, wet and rainy western North Carolina day–the sort that makes me grumble, “It’s February. Shouldn’t it be snowing instead?” Dodging raindrops…