...a word from Kathy

I n my memories, I see happy Christmas mornings, I see wrapping paper everywhere!  I hear squealing and laughter.  Additionally, I see our children wearing Easter clothes and running to and fro hunting Easter eggs, eating candy, joyful! I also see children carrying the flowering cross as they walk down the center aisle of our Texas church on Easter morning, I hear the Alleluia being proclaimed, I see smiles and joy!   And then a few days later,  I hear my child ask, "Mama, now what?  Christmas and Easter are over and now all we have is regular life for a while".  Indeed, now what? Peter, James, John, Mary, and many others asked the same question.  They had a thrilling few years but it didn't end as expected.  So, they hid, wept, asked for proof of life, denied, betrayed, and were devastated, and wondering, now what? As do I, too often.  And maybe, as do you.  Maybe our minds ask: But why?  For what purpose?  How could you? ...

I n the Eastern Orthodox tradition, the season of Lent is described as a “bright sadness.”  I've only recently heard this term and it has pierced my mind and thoughts. So today, I simply offer some questions. During the 40 days and nights that Jesus was in the wilderness, did he experience a bright sadness? During the temptations that Jesus faced, was there a bright sadness? (according to writings of Henri Nouwen, these temptations were being relevant, being spectacular, being powerful)  When I experience the temptations of relevancy, the longing to be spectacular, and power, can I see bright sadness in my life? When my life goes awry, can I find bright sadness? In Rolling Fork, Nashville, California, China, Russia, Eukraine, is there bright sadness? Do I dare to live my life in bright sadness? When Jesus was in the wilderness, was He bright with joy although He knew what days were ahead?   Is the way of bright sadness a process?  Perhaps we look at Lent in the wrong...

O ne mystery surrounding Jesus were His upside-down teaching points.  The weak will be strong.  The  first will be last.  The rich will be poor.  The greatest will be the least.  This perplexed the people of Jesus' day and still perplexes many of us.  This upside-down life teaching is counter-cultural to all else we see, hear, and experience in our daily lives.  Right? And now we're in a spiritual season that takes us to wilderness or to desert times.  Most of my life, I've thought of the desert as a place of pain, of want, of isolation.  It reminds me of the annual, dreaded doctor visit and the thought, "I really don't want to do this but know I should"!  BUT, what if this wilderness is another example of Jesus' upside-down teaching?  What if the wilderness is where the blessing finds us? Then Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil. And after He had fasted for forty days and forty nights,...

H onestly, some verses from the Bible bother me.  I don't understand their meaning.  However, I totally accept that I will not understand many things until heaven arrives!  But I do like to ponder and reflect.  Ponder with me today? Consider these verses from three books of the Bible. Then Jesus was led by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil. Matthew 4:1 At once the Spirit sent him out into the wilderness and he was in the wilderness forty days, being tempted by Satan. He was with the wild animals, and angels attended him. Mark 1:12-13 Jesus, full of the Holy Spirit, left the Jordan and was led by the Spirit into the wilderness, where for forty days he was tempted by the devil . Luke 4:1-2 Jesus was led into the desert by the Holy Spirit, by God Himself?  Why?  Why would God lead him, or me, or you into deserts?  I do not like the desert.  The desert makes me fearful; it strips me bare; it hurts, it wounds me. ...

C hurches and individuals are practicing a season of Lent, a 'giving up' as a preparation for Easter or an 'adding to' for the same reason. It is a time of reflection, a time of mourning, a time of awareness, and a recognition of how desperately we need and seek a Savior. Lent gives us an opportunity to anticipate the work of Easter.      Jesus, full of the Holy Spirit, returned from the Jordan and was led by the Spirit in the wilderness,       where for forty days he was tempted by the devil. He ate nothing at all during those days, and when they were over, he was famished.  Luke 4:1-2 Tempted and tested before His public work began. Tempted and tested before the teaching in the temple, before the healing of ailing people. Time after time, tempted and tested. Tested about life needs and God's power. Sounds like real life. When least expected, a test comes, an unexplained hurt occurs, an accusation is voiced. Conversely, when least expected, a joy ...

M y daddy used to have a garden and his prize harvest were his butterbeans.  Now, I know some of you may only be familiar with large lima beans that, honestly, are not too appealing to me.  But my daddy, knew the secret of butterbeans.  He picked his beans when they were babies and oh, so hard to shell.  But they provided a sweet, delicious feast in our home.  I would love a plateful tonight! This year, my husband started a garden.  I was pretty excited about the butterbeans in my future.  Just to note, I was raised in the city with nary a trip to the garden.  So imagine my surprise at visiting the garden one day last month, a week or so after our rows were neatly planted.  We certainly had a-lot of small plants growing; however, I soon learned that these plants were weeds not my beloved butterbeans.  Not the beans I had carefully, with back-breaking effort, sown after carefully preparing the soil.  Where were my treasures? 3 Then ...

G ood Friday is really good.  And not only because that day paved the way to eternal life.  Don't get me wrong, I want eternal life, I want fulfilling joy, no pain or tears and life in paradise!  But on the every day of Monday through Friday, I need Good Friday. On Friday, Jesus suffered wrongful accusations, the betrayal of friends, the silence of very close friends, physical abuse and emotional abuse, events happened where the crowd got carried away from fear and a lack of understanding.  It reminds me of days we are currently living.  Confusion, pain, accusations surround us.  It's called life.  The every days we are living.  And that is why I need Good Friday every day. With a loud cry, Jesus breathed his last. The curtain of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom. And when the centurion, who stood there in front of Jesus, saw how he died, he said, “Surely this man was the Son of God!” Mark 15:37-39 When the curtain ripped in the temple...