My Little Garden of Eden

I love my backyard, I really do. I often say that two of my favorite rooms of the house is the back porch and the firepit at the edge of the woods. From both vantage points I can watch the world go by spinning. Just this morning while it was still dark an owl was...

One Last Trip

Jake Malone has pretty much travelled all over the world as well as throughout this great country of ours. Along with his beloved travelling companion Delores, he has led church members, family and friends to exotic places like searching for the Loch Ness Monster, as...

Benedictions and Invocations

Those words usually come in the reverse order – invocations and benedictions. An invocation is a prayer offered at the beginning of something where we are asking that our hearts may be full and open to receive the presence of God in this particular gathering. In...

Look and See

This past weekend we took in a couple of days camping in the Great Smoky Mountains. Ordinarily I am not much for camping in the middle of the summer, but temperatures were mild, the trees were in full leaf, elk were grazing and the rivers and creeks were still swollen...

Every Year it is the Same Battle!

As in years past, deer have found my roses, peppers, tomatoes and black-eyed susans. They are not that fond of my herbs, but really enjoy the Gerber daisies, apparently as a garnish to the potted geraniums nearby. Last weekend I saw a doe – fat and slick – languidly...

Fortieth Day of Lent: Reflections on the Cross

Cross of Glory This cross is fittingly used for Easter. It is a simple Latin Cross with a rising sun placed behind it. Like most every cross examined, this one too has many variations. In many traditions, as the sun rises, Gloria, an ancient Latin doxology, is sung...