Today I was humbled by the beauty of humble faithfulness. I was up at NIH visiting Patrick Kelly (he is so cheered by your prayers and visits!). As I got ready to leave the hospital, I walked up to the big desk just inside the entrance from the parking garage, to see if I could get […]
Sunday Corporate Worship, Thoughts 1
On Sunday our church body gathers to praise God and encourage one another toward knowing him and serving him better. One of my jobs is sharing music that helps us to corporately adore our Savior and speak truth about our God, so I want to give you the opportunity to see the mindset behind the […]
Beauty, Generosity, Thoughts 2
Happy Labor Day! I hope you are enjoying a day of rest and refreshment as the summer draws to a close. Often, holidays feel like moments of grace in our very busy lives– special visits, sleeping in, special food. Elizabeth Boesen reflected on a moment of grace from this summer. I found it to be […]
“Trouble wonʼt go, peace wonʼt stay, oceans roar, levees break, ooh Trouble wonʼt go, peace wonʼt stay, bridges fall, earth gives way, ooh Ain’t no refuge, but You my God Ain’t no safe place, but in Your arms…” Our prelude this Sunday is surprisingly reflective of our physical state with earthquakes, hurricanes, famines, and war. […]
Culture, Life Together, Spiritual Disciplines, Thoughts 1
I am reminded again how potent the book of Proverbs is. I am using the format of the One Year Bible to read through the Scriptures. Every day I (try to) read a couple chapters of Old Testament, a chapter of New Testament, about ten verses of a Psalm, and sometimes only two verses of […]
Recently, a friend gave me a copy of a book by Sam Wells called Improvisation: The Drama of Christian Ethics. It’s way more interesting than its title suggests. And even though I’m only about a quarter of the way through it, it’s already given me lots to think about. I know it’s risky to quote […]
Beauty, Quiet Times, restoration, Thoughts 0
Post by Louise Brooks Outside my kitchen window, in a tree at the edge of my little Arlington backyard, there was a bird that sat on a branch. But this bird was so still that I thought it was simply a leaf shaped like a bird. I spent at least one full minute staring out […]
Sunday Corporate Worship, Thoughts 1
Yesterday was a great day at Restoration. Abundant sunshine, some awesome banjo playing, daylight saving time-related sleep deprivation… Great stuff! Since yesterday morning, I’ve found myself coming back over and over to one image in David’s sermon: the Sanhedrin’s semi-circle. The Sanhedrin were the council of Jewish leaders to whom the Romans had given extraordinary […]
A few weeks ago, Restoration member Liz Gray sent me this reflection. It’s beautiful. With her permission, I’m sharing it here. Thanks, Liz! This week I got a very unexpected package in the mail. My mom died about 17 years ago, and sometime shortly before she died she must have sat down one day and […]
A post from Matt Hoppe: How can life be so phenomenal in one breath and so frustrating with the next? How are we to respond with both mourning and laughter while recognizing pain and beauty? Sometimes the vastly different seasons happen simultaneously leaving us with the difficulty of lamenting someone’s hardship while being ecstatic about […]
