Metaphor and imagery are musts when it comes to gaining the most from scripture. The strong visuals we create in our minds help us live into our faith not just beautifully but specifically. This is the case in Psalm 24, a lesser rehearsed yet powerful writing that immediately follows...

  Look at your schedule. What’s that? You’re saying it’s full? Too full? If you are blessed with less (or almost nothing to do) on a to do list for even a day or two, consider how your time is spent. Is it peaceful? If you’re rushing about, how is...

  A newcomer to worship said the church was unwelcoming. Ouch. I said, “Say more.” I’ll call him Tim, and he did share more. “Well, one of your members didn’t welcome me when I was in your church, but that week in the grocery store she came up to me....

  That pastor or clergyperson slighted you. The offense was an obvious no-no. Of course, your feelings are hurt. How dare that man or woman of God do this? Yes, you stopped attending that mass or worship service. Why should you go? All the pain, the hurt, and the hard...

    The Nine Partners Monument in Harford Township was placed in 1890 to celebrate the 100th anniversary of the nine pioneers who first settled the area from Attleboro, Massachusetts, from a densely wooded area that had been Lenape hunting grounds. The Lenape (also known as the Lenni Lenape, the...

    Take the compliment, she thinks to herself as she stands in front of someone impressive. Instead, she hears back, “Oh, no, not me. This is really the work of the Lord.” “Yes, but you did it.” “I did it, but really, it is God’s direction through me.” If...

  I am a foster parent to my sixth child who is now 15 months old. I know. You’re thinking, “Aww, the pastor the church in Harford is fostering an infant…how sweet!” Whoa, wait. You ARE thinking fostering an infant is sweet, aren’t you? Honestly, it is sweet. For almost...

  I don’t mean the heat from late July temperatures when I ask, “Have you been too hot?” The heat I’m talking about isn’t indicated on an outdoor bank sign or discussed by a meteorologist. This is the heat when we admit we’re hot under the collar. Yes, I’m talking...

    Your back is against the wall. You’re pinned to the ground with a failure. What was taken cannot be returned. A wave or weight of grief leads you to—and keeps you in—a hole. From these places we best hear the story of Daniel, a faithful servant famous for...

Happy Fourth of July! Or here in this space, let me say, “Happy red, white and you!” Yes, you. Let’s start this conversation with a quote from founding father and first President George Washington. Mr. Mount Vernon once said, “While we are zealously performing the duties of good citizens and...