No Fear

Consider this prayer by Thomas Merton:

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Blessed to Be Stressed

I was rushing my daughter Louisiana out the door so she wouldn’t miss her bus this morning when she said, “Wait! I’m forgetting my lunch!”

I looked inside the open brown paper bag on the kitchen counter. A bottle of water. That was it. That was as far as I gotten last night before I told myself I’d get up a little bit early to finish making her lunch.

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Love Yourself

I have been sick since Friday with strep throat and a bad sinus infection. Although I was scheduled to teach three fitness classes today, I found substitute teachers so I could stay home and rest. But it is SO hard for me to lie down in the middle of the day! 

Instead of staying in bed, I spent more time in the Word and in my early morning prayer time. I threw in three loads of laundry, organized my bedroom closet, and bagged all the clothes and athletic shoes I have not worn in two years to donate to a woman's shelter.

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Animals and Healing

“His ears were often the first thing to catch my tears.”—Elizabeth Barrett Browning, referring to her cocker spaniel, Flush

My friend Charlette is battling cancer. Her companion dog, Dolly Dog, a little Chihuahua who Charlette rescued from an abusive home a few years ago, has been, by example, giving Charlette the strength to fight the cancer.

One of our readers, Ginger Gebert of Phoenix, Arizona, sent in a story that reminded me of Charlette and Dolly Dog. Here it is:

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Riddle Me This

Here are some riddles. Which of America's national parks is surrounded by water, 70 miles from land, and holds a fort that is the world's second largest masonry structure?
 
I thought I knew quite a bit about our national parks, but if you can answer this one you know a lot more about our national parks than I did—that is, until yesterday, when I traveled for two hours from Key West, Florida to get to it by catamaran, touring the fort and swimming and snorkeling at the coral reefs.
 

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Pain Always Pursues Pleasure

My husband and I attended a wonderful “Marriage Enrichment Conference” in Georgia this past weekend led by Dr. Richard Marks who has a ministry called Marriage for Life.

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The Journey That is Lent

We’re in Lent. The word comes from a Germanic root, the Anglo-Saxon Lencton meaning lengthen, for the days are growing longer now and hope of spring is in the air. The crocuses are peeping out of the snow and in some warm valleys the almond trees begin to bloom. 

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Wile E. Coyote

I’ve sat on both couches and in almost every chair in the apartment at least once this morning. I’ve walked from one room to another innumerable times and have even lain down on the living room floor for a while trying to come up with something to write about. It’s not usually a struggle for me, but for some reason today my mind is a complete blank.

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Healing with Harmony

When you invite angels into your life, you will find that things change. It’s subtle, at least in the beginning, but definitely noticeable. 

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A Safe Place

Hi, it's Julie. Occasionally, I'm asked to do inspirational speaking. Every single time my heart races, my hands tremble, and I imagine the very worst. What if they hate me? What if no one listens? What if I can't utter a word? What if I have a sneezing fit? I'd just agreed to a speaking engagement and had started dreaded it. I called Mother—she's spoken for years.

"Hey. Busy?"

"No. What's the matter?"

"Why do you think something's wrong?"

"By your voice."

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