On one of THOSE days, the alarm clock fails to rouse me. After the third slap at the snooze button, I'll roll off the bed to press my forehead on the carpet in prayer. In my fogginess, I misjudge the distance and crash a bit harder into the floor than I…
Gravity sucks us to the earth. The weight of our flesh drags us through the grime of this world. We expend all the energy we consume in the effort to sustain ourselves. At the end of the day, we collapse with exhaustion with nothing more to look forward to than another…
"Jesus answered: 'Watch out that no one deceives you. For many will come in my name, claiming, ‘I am the Messiah,’ and will deceive many. You will hear of wars and rumors of wars, but see to it that you are not alarmed. . . Because of the increase of wickedness, the love…
I don't venture up onto my roof often. In fact, I only brave that weak-kneed climb if no one else volunteers to help with an annual task. My core tightens as I wobble those initial steps. After I reach the center and grip onto an anchoring structure, my lungs relax for a full…
I pry my tongue from the pasty mire on the roof of my mouth. Parting my chapped lips, I heave in a breath of sultry air. Perspiration streams down my legs as I trudge across the parking lot. I struggle with a dizzy urge to hustle out of the August glare. My body…
She brushed past us in the school hallway. Her shoulders sagged beneath the weight of brimming tears. Flushed cheeks and nose betrayed her struggle to withhold sobs. She avoided eye contact. The girl continued down the hall in silence, as if she hoped to take cover before the cry burst forth. Did she…
Silas twisted on the uneven stone floor and squinted through the cell's dank shadows.The rough hewn stocks chafed at his swollen ankles. Pain raked across the raw flesh of his back as his shoulders rolled into a sticky puddle--his blood mingled with Paul's, no doubt. Sour and metallic odors weighted the air between their bodies. With trembling…
I grew up among whispering live oaks and pines. I scampered with other kids into the woods or frolicked with them among the tree cluster in our yard. When no one else could play, I climbed into my favorite oak and imagined myself queen of a living castle. In my tropical state, I…
Even the sparrow has found a home, and the swallow a nest for herself, where she may have her young—a place near your altar, Lord Almighty, my King and my God. Blessed are those who dwell in your house; they are ever praising you.-Psalm 84:3-4 All its wealthy heirs long gone, the vacant chateau welcomed passers-through. Despite caretakers' attempts…
I squinted at step number three hundred, wavering before me. Staking my right foot in place, I gripped the rail and heaved myself onward. My lungs strained to draw themselves full, but drank the air as if sucking ocean water through a straw to quench a thirst. I clutched my swimming…