I’ll call him Frankie. Frankie was a boy growing up in the West Central neighborhood of Spokane, Washington when my husband lived at the Westminster House, an incarnational urban ministry connected with Whitworth College. Doug invested a lot of time, love, and prayer in Frankie, as he did with many of the boys in that… Continue reading At the Gate
Deus Absconditus
While studying for a course final at Fuller Seminary, I stumbled across a great devotional nugget in a surprising place: my lecture notes from a class in Medieval and Reformation Theology! Our professor was discussing how Martin Luther saw the hiddenness of God within revelation, as well as outside of it. Luther argued that, quite… Continue reading Deus Absconditus
Alabanza!
I just returned home from preaching at our Saturday service. This was an especially significant event for me: it was the first time I had ever preached in Spanish. I have always shrugged off my pastor’s hints that I should preach at this service. I preach regularly for our Sunday morning service, but with small… Continue reading Alabanza!
Quotation of the Week
“I had come to bring the light of the Gospel into the darkness of the ghetto only to find that the greater darkness was not in the ghetto but within me. A penetrating light exposed in me an anemic faith supported by ample physical securities, a self-centeredness neatly camouflaged behind a sacrificial servant image, a… Continue reading Quotation of the Week
Rejected
So I am frustrated. I attended my denominational school, for both my undergrad and the beginning of my seminary education. During my years there I received a distinct calling to bear the good news to what many would consider to be unbearable places, and I have followed that call from Chicago to Spokane to Portland… Continue reading Rejected
Who is the enemy?
This past year my brother-in law began organizing neighbors on my block to form a block club in response to the increasing violence we were experiencing on our streets. We have met the first Friday of every month at the home of some good friends. Neighbors have come, many fearfully, to meet with our Senior… Continue reading Who is the enemy?
Quotation of the Week
“Following Jesus was, by his culture’s standards, an R-rated action movie, not a purpose-driven Bible study.” From Jesus the Radical Pastor
For my Oprah tells me so…
Okay, so I have been known to quote Oprah Winfrey on occasion. Just last week I actually caught myself saying to my fitness-conscious brother: “well, Oprah told me I should give up white foods and eating after 7pm.” While it is rare that I watch her show (when are the two kids EVER both asleep… Continue reading For my Oprah tells me so…
Lessons in the sand
Since Mercy has decided that after a month of living at Newman Lake, Tillamook and Grammy and Pop Pop’s backyard, our little apartment is terribly boring, we spent most of yesterday afternoon at our local park. Doug and I always joke about what it’s like to let our kids play at this park, especially in… Continue reading Lessons in the sand
Crusty feet
During my trip to Seattle, I made the decision to road-trip alone with the two kiddos to see our family down in Oregon. It was great to be with the family I have been lucky to inherit via Doug. It was also great to stay with good L.A. friends who relocated to Portland about a… Continue reading Crusty feet