This is the sixth in a November series produced by BNG on what it means to be “blessed,” a word so flippantly used that it often loses meaning. My life has been marked by a series of diversions that, looking…
Seeing mortality as blessing
Memories have become capricious things as I approach my seventh decade on Planet Earth. Conversations I could swear happened just a few days ago actually stretch back 20 years or more, yet there are days when I can’t remember whether…
When being a ‘blessing’ comes with some baggage
This is the fourth in a November series produced by BNG on what it means to be “blessed,” a word so flippantly used that it often loses meaning. For those of us who grew up evangelical, the term “blessing” comes…
Original blessing, the #blessed hashtag, and what it really means to be blessed
This is the third in a November series produced by BNG on what it means to be “blessed,” a word so flippantly used that it often loses meaning. One morning nine years ago while driving my children to school (and…
Blessing is not about good fortune; it is akin to God’s love
This is the second in a November series produced by BNG on what it means to be “blessed,” a word so flippantly used that it often loses meaning. #Blessed. It’s as common these days as saying the perfunctory “God bless…
‘We’re so blessed!’
This is the first in a November series produced by BNG on what it means to be “blessed,” a word so flippantly used that it often loses meaning. Before I tell you this story, I need to explain about the…
A daughter’s tribute — 50 years later
My brother was 15 and I was 18 when our father died Dec. 4, 1971 — 20 days short of his 46th birthday. Initially it was thought he died of a heart attack; he’d been sick all that previous year….
The timeless power of standing in someone’s winter, helping them see spring to come
I want to tell you about someone whose life’s work made a difference. Not everyone gets to see immediate results from their hard labor. In some ways, I suppose very few do. Pastors surely don’t very often. Other than a…
Religious communities can offer more to the coronavirus vaccination effort
As religious leaders of different traditions pose while receiving their initial injections of the coronavirus vaccine and even livestream their jab for congregants to see, I can’t help but think that we could do even more. Of course, talking positively…