Advent Blog

Tag: #lentenblog2023

  • Good Friday

    The bell tolls.The congregation settles.The cello’s mournful groan surfaces.The violins and flute lament in their depths below, accentuating the agony.The bass voices entomb us in the sorrow.The sopranos punctuate our grief.And so begins our communal requiem.                                     From Susan Ceely Philips

  • Kindness

    Loving God….Loving Others “And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.” –Romans 8:28 The kindness that we share with our brethren demonstrates the love of God within us. Paul writes, “So now faith, hope, and love abide, these three;…

  • Mary Marvels at her Boy

    From the beginning when her boy is littleMary watches, marveling at what he does.His first everything: laughing aloud,first step when she puts her hands out toward him,calls to Joseph, “Come and see!”Later, calls again when her boy at twointently hammers the wooden peg as if conversingwith the toy his father made for him.Each first, a…

  • Hope in God’s Surprises

    Earlier this week, I was thinking about how easy it was to experience wonder or to be surprised and delighted when I was a child. It was also easier to laugh hard and often back then.

  • With Basin and Towel

    Beauty as I’d never seen Eyes closed through mirror darkVision of servant at deedStill takes my heart apart  Humility on bended kneesSplashes hitting her feet and the floor Hands tremulous by advancing disease Undeterred for the one he adored  His bride of 60 some years Her hip broken now newly repaired Unable to reach her own feet She sat on toilet…

  • Hope in Perspective

    I take a walk around my neighborhood almost every morning and any time I need a little pick me up. Some days it’s easier than others to motivate myself.  It would be so much easier to eat a cookie! Or two! But, I tell myself I only have to walk to my favorite tree which…

  • Kindness is Like Eating Chocolate Ice Cream with a Toddler

    If you’ve ever eaten chocolate ice cream with a toddler, you know that you’ll both have as much on you as in you. Kindness works the same way. You can’t be kind to someone without being impacted as well.

  • A Tribute to Clair

    On March 18th, our friend and longtime member of Marble Collegiate Church, Clair Zak passed away. She was one of the first female members of our church’s board appointed in the mid-1980’s. She shared a personal story with the Marble Women’s Ministry that was published in a prayer book many years ago. Clair had a…

  • Hope During a Storm

    Rainbows remind me that storms do pass. It’s hard to remember during the downpour, though. But, something a friend said recently said will make it a little easier next time. She knows I have been going through a challenging season and reminded me that God blesses us during the storm by reminding me how we…

  • The Art of Kindness from Children

    The Middle School classroom (Grades 5 and 6) at CYF talked about “Kindness” after reading “Just Help! How to Build a Better World,” and they discussed how kindness isn’t always seen or spoken about. They said, “Doing an act of kindness can be unseen just as much as seen, and no less special and important.”…