Author: John Smith

By Eloise Briscoe As I was walking out of church a few weeks ago after Anthony’s “Identity Crisis” sermon (1 Peter 1:1-4), I started humming a song that I hadn’t thought of in a long time. It was a Sara Groves song called “To the Moon”. Do you know it? You can hear Sara sing...

By Jane Highley I’ll be turning 38 this month, and that number puts me squarely in the “late-30s” demographic. It’s also the age that feels like I’ll be entering a 2-year holding pattern for the formidable 40s, which sounds really grown-up. I’d like to say that, at this point in my life, having been a...

By Aaron Ullman “Forsan et haec olim meminisse iuvabit” ~Virgil, from The Aeneid While there is no real English equivalent to Virgil’s famous Latin phrase, some have roughly translated it to “Maybe someday you will rejoice to recall even this.” The words are powerful and emotional in the context of the epic—Aeneas and his nomadic...

By Laurel Kehl Immigration. Just the word itself raises a lot of strong emotions in our hearts these days, especially the idea of undocumented (illegal) immigrants. As Americans, we have a lot of pride in being a nation that from the beginning has said, “Give me your tired, your poor, your huddled masses…” but we...

By Rae Barnes A New Year. A New You! These words are everywhere right now. Truly, there is no other time of year when everyone’s need for a Savior is so apparent to me. The latter part of 2 Corinthians 5:17 seems to be in the front of my mind this time of year: “The...

By Aileen Weik I was thirteen years old when I first realized the Christmas morning tradition I knew may not be the norm. This revelation surfaced as my brothers and I watched a video of how my triplet cousins opened their presents on Christmas morning. In equal parts shock and amusement, and maybe a bit...

By Jane Highley All is not calm,      doing and going with lists to check and cross;      weary of wanting the greener grass, a life of gleam and gloss. Did I make enough, smile enough, do enough      to sate little needs of my three;      but here is how the Rescuer still saves me: Visions of past...

By James Ahn As a little boy, I believed in God. I wasn’t sure exactly who God was, but I would pray to God if I needed something. And amazingly most of my prayers that I recall were answered, such as passing my Tae Kwon Do Belt Exams, passing school tests, getting a Nintendo game...

Christmas Poem by Nancy Unks Star of my life Jesus Christ born in innocence Tempted like me to fear, covet, complain, to criticism, cynicism, apathy, doubt. Yet remaining Perfect He suffered my sentence and died, then rose to shining, glorious, infinite life. Now he’s welcoming me, even guilty me, to life, to his perfect and...

By Jesse Harper 8:20 AM Sunday morning. “Come on, we need to go. Sit here, let me put your shoes on.” Coats? Yes. Diaper bag? Check. 8:28 AM. 1 wife, 3 kids buckled in the car, ok, if I roll through enough stop signs, we’ll only miss the first song. 8:40 AM Ugh, they’re on...

By George Caruso In the Pixar movie Inside Out, there is a scene where a camera crew uses a “reality distortion filter” to turn a stage production into a convincing dream. That scene resonates with me, as it reminds me of my own filter that often distorts my vision in life. Knowing this, I try...

By Charlotte Gleason Growing up, I viewed the arrival of Christmas as an opportunity to fill my already full social calendar. My role as a pastor’s daughter assured me of several anticipated events: dinner invites served with Lancaster County hospitality, a guaranteed solo during the annual Christmas Eve service, and cash from relatives who no...