(2 minutes, 19 seconds) I first heard classical music in Music Appreciation 101 at UW-La Crosse. From the first mesmerizing notes of Pachelbel’s Canon in D, I was smitten and decided that whenever Prince Charming came along and we got married, I had to walk…

(1 minute, 34 seconds) I love the God-enabled tenacity of the apostle Paul. Reading an account in Acts 14 kindled a fire in my heart as I returned for an epic hike in the Grand Canyon. I read in Acts 14:19 that Paul’s enemies stoned…

My phone was abuzz one day last December with texts from my children asking what to wear for a concert we were all attending the following evening. Our eldest, a spiffy dresser since he was four, said I should inform his brothers that he was…

(2 minutes, 11 seconds) Eleven years ago today, my surgeon—unbeknownst to me—handed me off to a student surgeon who ruined my hip. At an appointment many months after my total hip replacement surgery, when everything was still going steeply south rather than getting better, my…

(1 minute, 48 seconds) Ever since I heard the embarrassing story of Debbie’s billowy dress getting caught in a fan, I’ve wanted to cultivate a quicker sense of humor and grow in the good habit of thinking less of myself. My friend Jon’s wife, Debbie,…

(1 minute, 29 seconds) I wore winter gloves to a conference a few weekends ago, and by mid-afternoon, I had tucked my mitts into my bag, along with two sweaters. ‘Tis the season when upper mid-westerners like myself must check the weather in the morning…

1 minute, 57 seconds Do you have a circumstance in your life that makes you so scared, vulnerable, or anxious that your heart trembles within you? I’m grateful if this unsteadiness of soul isn’t your current state. At some point, however, you may have fear…

2 minutes 22 seconds Most mornings, I greet my twelve hens by name as I open their little coop door and release them into the bright summer joys of worms and all things yummy and green. Most summer evenings, I “tuck them all in” and…

Building Relationships With Your Adult Children(1 min, 59 seconds) I’m grateful for friendships where we can pass on the small talk and go right to the good and hard. Where we can humbly savor together the sweet places, and honestly confess the painful stuff of…

1 minute, 59 seconds A high school wrestling match is six minutes long. I know this because, for four of my teenage years, I sat cross-legged on my cheerleading pillow right next to the wrestling mat where I got a close-up view of what it…