Salty Zebra

  The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the one and only son, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth.   John 1:14  Have you ever been on a mission trip? Even just a short term one for a week or two? It is life changing, not just for you, but for the people you visit. My friend, Sackie, was the head of operations in Liberia for Serve the Children, a ministry that our family has been involved with for more than 20 years. He came to the US to visit one time in the early 2000s and spoke at our church. Afterwards I felt a tug on my heart to go on a trip to Liberia, to experience what he talked about, to do something . But, and this will not likely come as a surprise to you, I recognized that travel to Africa is expensive and I wondered if my personal contribution to a mission team would be worth what it cost. Would me giving $3,000 be worth more than me showing up for a couple of weeks and playing with some kids...

  But the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid. I bring you good news that will cause great joy for all the people. Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is the Messiah, the Lord.”   Luke 2:10-11  My husband is the consummate provider. Taking care of those around him has been his hallmark characteristic for as long as I can remember. He has worked hard his whole life to take care of me and our children, making sure we had everything that was good for us, including time and access to him as he prioritized family vacations and being there for important events like recitals and graduations. He even saw family time as such a priority that thirteen years ago he bought us a house out by the ocean so that we could have a place for focused time together! He went on to echo this caring instinct in his career with Microsoft where for years he was in charge of first making sure things worked right for people around the world and then making sure that they w...

 Have you ever looked up at the sky and it was almost green? Clouds, dark and swirling, hover on the horizon and you're absolutely certain - there's a storm a brewin'!  All this took place to fulfill what the Lord had said through the prophet: “The virgin will conceive and give birth to a son, and they will call him Immanuel” (which means “God with us”).  Matthew 1:22-23  You’ve got to figure one of the first things on Mary’s mind when she heard from the angel and then found herself to be pregnant as she had been told, was, “What will Joseph think?” Their culture was not like ours today. If an unmarried woman becomes pregnant today, people hardly bat an eye. Yes, there might be some judgement or condemnation from uber conservative people around them, but for the most part people will think nothing of it. In Mary’s day, a woman could be stoned to death if she was found to be unmarried and pregnant. At the very least, her upcoming marriage, for which she was already ...

  But the angel said to her, “Do not be afraid, Mary; you have found favor with God. You will conceive and give birth to a son, and you are to call him Jesus. He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give him the throne of his father David, and he will reign over Jacob’s descendants forever; his kingdom will never end.”   Luke 1:30-33  Mary: the woman, the myth, the legend… I can’t think of another person in history that has had more credited to her, other than Jesus. But it’s not her fault, she never asked to be elevated to near-godlike status. Over time, the church and other groups have attributed to her power and glory that, in my understanding, should never be due to a human. My mother-in-law is even an associate nun in an order called the Sisters of the Holy Names of Jesus and Mary (the SNJM).   So how did all this come about, and why do people venerate and even worship Mary? Well, for one thing, in a paradoxical realit...

 Depression. It makes food taste... bland. Sunny days look... dim. Even comedians don't sound funny anymore. So, what's the point of going on a cruise if you're depressed? Here's my take on it. As with many of my other symptoms, you're going to be depressed whether you're at home or on a cruise, so you may as well be on a cruise!   Depression, at least for me in this season, doesn't mean that I'm miserable. It simply means that I get 40% less enjoyment out of what I'm doing. I see things differently. I experience things differently. How does that play out in real, lived experience? Well, for example, I have found that my interactions with people on this cruise haven't gone as well as I remember in the past. Negativity hits me quite a bit harder, so the lady sitting next to me at my dinner with the officers last night complaining about the temperature of her food and how long it took for dessert to come stood out much more starkly than it would ha...

  The gloom will be dispelled for those who were anxious. (Isaiah 9:1a)   These last few weeks for me have been cloaked in darkness. Only God knows the reason. Is it because those around me have been dealing with depression for so long and it finally wore off on me? Is it because of the pain I’ve been experiencing ratcheting up a few more notches? Is it the death threats and the darkness of that situation? Is it a chemical imbalance in my body that has little or nothing to do with my external circumstances? Again, only God knows. What I know is that it is very real and I have been experiencing it deeply. I hoped a cruise to sunnier climates would help last week, but I found that the darkness just followed me there too .   Today’s SOAP verse for our new study, The Savior Who Comes Near, is Isaiah 9:6-7, “For a child has been born to us, a son has been given to us. He shoulders responsibility and is called Wonderful Adviser, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peac...

  In the midst of full schedules, noisy distractions, and uncertain seasons, something deep within us longs to slow down. We crave more than just rest. We crave reconnection, a moment of stillness, and a sense of God’s presence that reminds us we’re not alone.*  This quote is from the introduction of this year's Love God Greatly Advent study, The Savior Who Comes Near . It resonated deeply with me, and if it resonates with you as well, you might want to consider joining me in studying this Advent season! I'll be starting on Monday, November 24th and following along for four weeks, until Friday, December 19th. Knowing me, though, my posts will be sprinkled with a little of this and that added in, so they might continue right up till Christmas or beyond. If you'd like to stay on track with this one, consider picking up your own copy - either physical or digital - or downloading the app .   The focus of this study is on how Jesus comes near to us. The first week we...

 What does night mean to you? Is it a time of rest and rejuvenation? Do you look forward to the end of the day with all its work and worry? Or does darkness bring with it a sense of dread? Do your thoughts begin to spiral and the "what ifs" multiply? Tish begins her book by looking at the night and what it means to different people at different times in history. When the prayer of Compline was first written, nighttime was a different creature. They did not have electric lights and cell phones, ambulances, ERs and 911. There were no security systems on the houses and the threat of thieves or worse was very real. Tish explores how, "we... face our vulnerability in a unique way as darkness falls." She considers the way, apart from the distraction of daytime, we are faced with amplified grief and anxiety.  The prayer of compline is from a monastic tradition dating back to the sixth century where Benedict and his fellow monks would pray eight times a day, starting with ...

 Can you believe it's been two months since we started this study ? I'm not sure I got out of it what I had hoped. I was looking for an overview of the Bible and seeing Jesus from beginning to end, but I think I got sidetracked by different things each day. I hardly ever wrote specifically about what the verse referred to. So, as I go about this wrap up, rather than writing about what I wrote about, I'm going to look at the verses I was given and see if I can get the big picture.  Of course, if you're going to do an overview of the Bible, you're going to start in Genesis with creation. The first day  we looked at God's work in creation, and how on the seventh day He rested. In the creation story we see Jesus, in fact we learn later in John 1:3  that everything that was made in creation was made by Jesus. Next, in Genesis 1:26-27 , we hear God say to Himself, "Let us make humankind in our image, after our likeness." Is Himself correct if He is three in ...

 As I promised before , here is the first installment of my synopsis of Tish Harrison Warren's book, Prayer in the Night: For Those Who Work or Watch or Weep  *. A dear friend shared this book with me while I was going through a very difficult time last summer and I'm so happy to share it with you as well. Tish Harrison Warren is the author of one of my top three favorite books of all time,  Liturgy of the Ordinary: Sacred Practices in Everyday Life  *. She has influenced my perspective on life, God, and how they all connect in so many ways. I love how she uses the historical practices of the church to explore everyday life and faith.  This book is a deep expository of the prayer of compline , found in the Book of Common Prayer , which is primarily used by the Anglican church but has influenced other denominations such as Lutherans and Methodists. Before this has you heading off to read something else, or worse doom scrolling on your phone, I'd encourage you to ...

  So, you’ve made it to Platinum status (or maybe even higher) with Norwegian Cruise Line (NCL). What should you make sure to take advantage of so you don’t miss out on any of your perks? I’m here to talk you through it today.   Your benefits begin before you ever board the ship, so keeping these things in mind can save you money, improve your experience or both! As soon as you join the Latitudes Rewards Program , after your first cruise, you are eligible to book future cruises with extra rewards points associated. Typically you receive 1 point per cruise night in a regular room. If you book a Suite or a room in the Haven, you’ll get an extra point per night, but you’ll pay for that point with a much higher room cost. What you may not know is that you can receive a free extra point per night, moving you up in status twice as fast, by booking a member cruise. You can find these when searching by choosing “More” and “Past Guest Offer.” I’ve gotten a great deal of my points th...