Widowhood—rarely did I ever have thoughts of it, and those thoughts were quickly dismissed. God had blessed our lives so richly. Would not my husband, Howard, and I enjoy many years together… grow old together… While enduring a chronic cough that had begun three months earlier, on April 27, 2011, Howard received the report that…
The Perfect One
Do you ever long in your heart to be perfect? That is, perfect in thought, words and actions, not to mention the motivations of the heart. Isn’t it usually after muddling up something and revealing our very human imperfections that we really wish we could be perfect? Alas, perfection only belongs to One. To find…
Open Your Eyes
“It would be wrong to turn a blind eye, Lulu,” my heart shouted. “But you’ve got both kids on the motorbike and you are already late to school,” my head answered. “You can’t do much.” “Yes, but God can.” I looked back and saw the old man carrying a woman in the hot blazing sun….
Number Our Days
“So teach us to number our days, that we may apply our hearts unto wisdom.” Psalm 90:12 Written by Joanie Pegram Spring 2016 Last Saturday morning, one of my colleagues unexpectedly and peacefully went home to be with the Lord. One moment she was enjoying life as usual, and the next she was experiencing true…
Serving or Slaving: Love Makes the Difference
“Charity suffereth long, and is kind; charity…seeketh not her own, is not easily provoked, thinketh no evil,… beareth all things,… endureth all things.” 1 Corinthians 13 “Mommeeee!! I neeeeeeed yoooouu!” For the third time in five minutes, I had been summoned in this way. The first time was for an “accident” in the bathroom. “No…
Missed Opportunities Are Expensive
“Nothing is more expensive than a missed opportunity” (Jackson Brown, Jr.). Have you ever regretted a missed opportunity? I have—too many, as a matter of fact. Probably one of the greatest opportunities we have as believers is to give someone the good news, the Gospel of Jesus Christ! Wouldn’t it be wonderful if we took…
The Influence of an Ordinary Day
It was an ordinary day in northern Arizona…that is if any day in northern Arizona can be considered ordinary. The crisp, brrrr-chill mornings with the smell of pine needles greeted us every day. Each morning as we walked out the door of our home, the scene was breathtaking. The majestic San Francisco Peaks and the…
Refuge in the Names of God
When we moved into the little house at the edge of the Vienna Woods, I had no idea what lay beyond our doorstep. As the kids and I ventured up a path through the trees, I saw the tower. It was tall and rather narrow with concrete walls, edged with stone work, curving upward in…
Glorious Rebirth
“I was BORED of having boys when we lived in Oklahoma!” “Mom, Ezra said I can’t marry Renee when we grow up! Is that true?” “Let me hold ‘Nee!” “Renee is a cutie-wootie.” Imagine these adoring statements being said in the endearing voices belonging to four little boys, and you’re picturing what I am blessed…
Thoughts from The Holy Land
I’m sitting here in Jerusalem. It is the night before the opening of the new embassy. The streets are packed and the air filled with excitement as it seems as all of Jerusalem is gathering at the Western Wall (otherwise known as the Wailing Wall). Young and old, with lots of strollers, gather and the…
The Beautiful Spirit 