My Dad passed away eight months ago. The name he went by depended on your relationship to him. His legal name was Robert Kessenich. Some called him Bob, others Kess, and also Great-grandpa, Grandpa and Dad. For the last three and a half years, my Father lived around the corner from me in an assisted living residence. He moved here at 96 years of age. This was a treat for me, because he formerly lived in Southern California, which meant that I only saw him once or twice a year

I often let my mind wander, as I do various mundane chores in my house or garden. Thoughts and blog ideas come to me as I do dishes, fold laundry, and weed.  While doing these jobs, my mind is quiet enough to hear what the Lord wants to teach me.  Sometimes it's about things I’m personally dealing with. Other times, it's someone I should pray for. This time, while doing dishes, I listened to a song about Jesus, and my thoughts turned to his hands. It began with Jesus’s birth.

“Brothers and sisters, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: forgetting what is behind, and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus.”      Philippians 3:13-14 Greetings! Can you believe we only have one week left in January? Time sure goes by quickly. My mom used to say, “The older we get, the faster time seems to go.” That is so true. When our child

"But thou, O Lord, are a shield about me; the glory and the lifter of my head.” Psalm 3:3 Do you ever ponder over a verse, until the Lord shows you something new? I ponder while gardening, doing dishes, or folding laundry. When I’m doing jobs that don’t require a lot of focus, I often think on scriptures  that I have read. In this case, it was a sleepless night that turned my thoughts toward this verse. I’ve read this verse many times before, but on this restless night some n

There are several hundred verses in the Bible referencing love. Not surprising because isn't it the “Love of God” that drew us? I know for me, I saw a difference in people that were Christians. They were not perfect, but seemed to have a peace and joy that I was drawn to. I occasionally visited services at Calvary Chapel in Costa Mesa. It was the first time I heard about the love of Jesus. At other churches I only heard about repentance and judgement. I was afraid of God. I d

Sometimes in my busyness and responsibility of caring for my Dad, I can forget to trust that God has a plan, far better than my own. This...

I love spring time. The sun is finally shining and the heavy rains have stopped. Living in the Pacific Northwest, we get a lot of rain....

Age is a funny thing to consider. So often it's about our perspective. When we are children, we can’t wait for our next birthday to be a...

As I visited with the residents at my Dads home, I noticed something new. I’ve mentioned before how people would respond more often when...

There are many things that vie for our attention these days. Home, family, work, phones, television, etc. None of these are bad things...

Christmas is almost here! In all the hustle and bustle of the season, I took time to spend a quiet moment reading in Luke chapter two,...

“It is good to give thanks to the Lord, to sing praises to your name, O Most High; To declare your steadfast love in the morning, and...

We all have needs. Some large, (as those experiencing the recent hurricanes) and some that may seem small; but needs just the same. My...

I have often said that I want to write words that encourage others. But what does that really mean? In the dictionary encouragement is...

There are many times God tells his people to “be still”. He even told the wind to be still, and it obeyed. I pondered this over several...

There are different kinds of guilt. There is guilt that I prefer to call conviction, that comes from sinful words or actions. Thankfully...

I’ve noticed that people at the assisted living home where my Dad lives, like to be called by name. If I say, “Good morning”, they might...

“While the earth remains, seed time and harvest, cold and heat, summer and winter, day and night, shall not cease.” (Genesis 8:22) Has...

I was reading in Psalms 107 this morning. It started with, “Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good; his love endures forever.” The Lord...

Over the holidays, our family got together and shared food, fun, memories, and germs. Many of us ended the holidays with coughs and...