We have moved to the beautiful city of Quarteira in Portugal, with its wonderful beaches and colorful houses and apartment buildings. We met our host's parents, and it was one of the highlights of this visit. His mother could not speak any English, but she managed to show me all that I needed to know... Continue Reading →
It is hard to really understand the lives of other people, unless you can walk in their shoes. For years, the lives of immigrants to America have not really interested me, mainly because I assumed that moving to an unfamiliar place is no big deal, with basically every place the same. I never thought about... Continue Reading →
As we walked along the beach, the waves crashed against the rocks, and occasionally the spray would reach to the people's faces as they walked along the quay in front of us. For some reason, I thought that was something good to have happen to me. So, once I managed the courage to step out... Continue Reading →
Walking along the boardwalk listening to people talk, I am amazed at the numbers of languages spoken here in Portugal. I am just nosy enough to want to know what everyone is saying, and whether they are words of joy, love, fear, or anger. What is comforting for me is that until people start to... Continue Reading →
For weeks, the
Life can become frightening in the blink of an eye! One evening after work, I went to the store to buy some things for the children's breakfast, namely milk and orange juice. At that time, I did not know how to drive, so I had to take the bus everywhere. I had never had a... Continue Reading →
One of the first sermons I ever heard was titled, "How Big is Your God?" I must have been in my early teens then, and I thought the question was strange, because it seemed to suggest that there were different gods and that they varied in sizes and, I guessed, in the power to help... Continue Reading →
Using the definition of talisman as anything whose presence (and by extension, lack of presence) exercises a remarkable or powerful influence on human feelings and actions, I believe that love, by its presence or its absence, is the greatest talisman. This is why it so important that children learn that their parents love them. When... Continue Reading →
To compare oneself to someone else is a recipe for unhappiness and anxiety. One of my fellow Sunday School teachers refers to this behavior as "compare-tinitis." It is like an illness that invades the mind and the spirit, and the only cure is to come to see that not being identical to anyone else makes... Continue Reading →
As a child, I loved the peace and quiet of being alone. Having been told that I would never have children of my own, I expected to spend my adult life in that blissful silence. But God had other plans for my life, for so much of it has been spent surrounded by the noise... Continue Reading →
Help from Heaven 