Traveling Thoughts

The countdown is on – there are only a few more hours left before the end of the year! Once again, in the last few hours and minutes of the year, I find myself processing what has taken place and looking toward the future with a spirit of hope. This end of year reflection on the power of words is something that I’ve found to be a helpful and meaningful practice.  One of the quotes that I’ve found meaningful when moving into a new season, year, etc. and not wanting to take the baggage that is the past is this "Yearning for a new way will not produce it. Only ending the old way can do that. You cannot hold onto the old, all the while declaring that you want something new. The old will defy the new; The old will deny the new; The old will decry the new. There is only one way to bring in the new. You must make room for it." -Neal Donald Walsch  2018 – Celebrate In thinking through the word I would select for 2018, I was inspired by Colony House’s “Mo...

During Advent, Hyde Park Community UMC did a series based on Beatles songs as we “Unwrapped Hope, Joy, Peace, and Love” preparing for Christmas. I was BEYOND excited for this sermon series! As we came to a finale of the “long and winding road” of Advent my hope was that some people thought, “Don’t stop the music!” For those experiencing that sentiment, I stood in solidarity with them – as music is a passion of mine.  While I know God can’t give all of the gifts to people – I wish I would have received the gift of music (either singing or playing – I’m not picky) instead of only the gift of appreciating music. While a college professor graded me as being only “average” in my appreciation of music I have since made up for it spending extra money and time at concerts.  For some people, though, music is something that just “sounds nice, it’s good background noise.” For me, it is so much more! People of the Bible used music as a tool to pray and as an outlet to e...

“Death is a powerful tool that allows us to rethink our outlook and wakes us up to the things that matter and makes our lives meaningful.” I wrote this sentence down just a little over two years ago. Working within a church you are invested in the lives of people of various life stages and I have found that death goes beyond the loss of a loved one. I realized that that death can occur in our jobs, our relationships, and seasons of life. My experience with death for most of my life had been very limited. My paternal grandparents had passed when I was very little and my only other experiences came from walking with friends as they experienced the death of loved ones. Then two years ago, I received an unexpected (and unwelcomed) call that didn’t allow me to avoid death anymore but face it straight on. My 40-year-old cousin suddenly passed. I had just talked to her on the phone the week before and now she was gone? Now very awake to the new outlook that death provides, I watch...