Uphill idealist

I remember the morning that Mr. W's youngest son left to make a life for himself away from the family farm. Our family had worked for Mr. W even before I was born, so my memories of him and his two boys farming together were an extension of my own family life. I honestly can't remember Mr. W's boys not being a part of my life. Every morning, it was my job to collect water from the well for morning household chores. As I carefully carry gallons of fresh water in the bucket upon my head, Mr. W would smile and greet me saying, " Here you go. (Handing me a fresh-plucked flower from his own flower bed) A daisy for my day-star!" Mr. W had planted many different wild flowers in his flowerbed. Every day he would water and weed those wild flowers. It was in a way his morning ritual like my water carrying. I carried water to the kitchen and Mr. W tended to his flowers as he waited for his sons' to get ready for the days work. Mr. W has two sons, Michael and Simon. Micha...

The image posted above (The Lord Reigns) is by He Qi and I have loved his art for a very long time. Below is some more info on the who and what concerning the artist. Take a few minutes to look at his fantastic artwork. "Dr. He Qi 17 Da Jian Ying Xiang Nanjing, CHINA, 210029 please check He Qi's website: www.heqiarts.com Dr. He Qi is a professor at the Nanjing Union Theological Seminary and a tutor for master candidate students in the Philosophy Department of Nanjing University. He is also a member of the China Art Association and a council member of the Asian Christian Art Association. He has been committed to the artistic creation of modern Chinese Christian Art for more then twelve years. He hopes to help change the "foreign image" of Christianity in China by using artistic language, and at the same time, to supplement Chinese Art the way Buddhist art did in ancient times. In his works, He Qi has blended together Chinese folk customs and traditional Chinese painti...

God is calling to each one of us, "Come back to me, with your whole heart." The parable of the prodigal son is an expression of the complex structure of family relationships, grace and forgiveness and ultimately God's perspective on our place with him. Grace, light, warmth, comfort, and healing are represented in the role of the Father in this parable. The character of the father is a sketch of God's grace filled attitude towards humanity. Just as the father in this parable longs for his lost son to return home and his eldest son to return to a relationship based on grace and not judgment. God desires us to come back to him. It could be said that the father in this parable represents grace , the prodigal son imperfect humanity , and the eldest son judgment . All three of these characters are ones that each one of us can play out in out own lives. We can be givers of grace and breathe life into the world around us. We can be imperfect like the prodigal son: self seeki...

Have you ever been at a place in life where you felt safe, secure and free and out of nowhere OUCH! a comment - even an innocent suggestion causes your heart and mind to recoil from the sting. Yeah, that is me. _________________________________________________________________________ Ouch! Why do those words cause such a spasm. The reaction doesn't match their collection of: content, context, and action. These old wounds take longer to heal, than I thought or suspected - so what's the deal? Sting! I suppose this is part of the process. Part of the healing. Healing isn't numbness. These old wounds are making themselves known. Why can't these feelings just leave me alone. Band-aid. What and who will be my protection? Rest and patience are written for my prescription. These old wounds are unpredictable like a charlie horse or a funny bone - shocking and not so funny. Ouch! Coming back to life from the dead isn't painless. Time is required for my resurrected heart to r...

So what are you giving up for Lent? Those words were ringing around in my mind and ears for the days before Ash Wednesday. This is the first year I've attended and participated in an Ash Wednesday service and I was really excited. As a child, I'd see the kids that went to services on Ash Wednesday and think, "Wow, why can't I go to school with a dirty forehead?" Personally, I'm not sure if I thought of it as an opportunity to get out of school or a natural curiosity about diversity of faith - but I wanted to be involved either way. In Lent, we think about our weaknesses, humanity and how Jesus was willing to give so much of himself for our sake. Lent is another part of the Easter story that I feel often is glazed over or replaced by our own human desire to improve ourselves. "So, what are you giving up for lent?" the question looms over us like the barrage of new years resolutions from only six weeks ago. People give up sweets and fattening foods I t...

Please consider attending this event on march 10! We had a chance to attend a retreat with Emergent Pittsburgh last fall and made some new friends and learned a great deal! Check it out! Tara Leadership in the 21st Century with Tim Keel On March 10th Emergent Pittsburgh will host Tim Keel, lead pastor of Jacob’s Well Church This seminar will explore issues facing women and men providing leadership in the local church (and beyond) in the midst of a changing culture. The experience is designed to encourage, connect, catalyze, facilitate, empower, and resource the church in the greater Pittsburgh region. (register here) Details: When: Saturday March 10th from 9am - 3pm Where: Spinning Plate Artist Lofts in Pittsburgh’s East End (map) Cost: $25 (includes lunch provided by the Urban Fusion Cafe) How?: Register Here