This past Spring, I checked a big adventure off of my bucket list. I hiked the 101 mile stretch of the Appalachian Trail (AT) that passes through the Shenandoah National Park from Front Royal to Waynesboro, Virginia- just me, a 40-pound backpack, a hammock and a walking stick. For some, the thought of walking 100 miles in the woods might seem boring. But for me, even the small things seem to hold my interest. Being out in nature energizes me….
This morning I locked myself out of the house. I knew it the second the door closed behind me. “You don’t have your keys, you idiot!”, the voice in my head rang out loud and clear. So, now what to do? Since we are new to the area, I knew that the house was, indeed, locked. I had checked each door carefully before retiring the night before. It didn’t help that at our staff luncheon yesterday, I had told the…
This week on my never ending to-do list is arranging for our utility shutoff dates in preparation for our move from Virginia to Pennsylvania. Yesterday I contacted Verizon Fios and American Garbage Disposal… and today I’ve spoken with Catherine at Prince William County Water Authority, Irene at NOVEC, Tammy at Washington Gas and Connie at Prince William County Building Construction Inspection. And do you know what? Each one has been a fantastic customer service experience. Really! The representatives have been…
One month and counting! In less than 30 days we will be relocating to beautiful Lancaster County, Pennsylvania. Settlement on our PA house is scheduled for December 30th. So, for the month of December, as a family, we are making an effort to say goodbye to friends and enjoy some of the things we’ve come to love in Northern Virginia that may not be as available in our new location- ethnic food like Peruvian chicken, Vietnamese Pho and our favorite…
We have a neurotic dog and her name is Chloe. Back in August we adopted Chloe from the Loudoun County Animal Shelter. She’s a one-year old beagle and has, to put it kindly, issues. We think she’s a failed hunting dog. She flinches at most sounds and runs away when she sees large men, (she’s terrified of Justin). When there’s activity in a room, she paces and circles in the corner and she only eats at night when no one is…
The Lord had said to Abram, “Leave your native country, your relatives, and your father’s family, and go to the land that I will show you. 4 So Abram departed as the Lord had instructed. (Genesis 12:1 & 4) We just bought a house in Pennsylvania and put our house on the market in Virginia. That simple 16-word sentence just doesn’t do justice to the stress of the past week. On the PA side, it’s involved house hunting, hours of online research, dozens of phone calls and…
Hello Friends! As is obvious, I haven’t blogged much this summer and fall. Things have been very busy with many ups and downs. For much of the summer I was on personal sabbatical after a very busy season of ministry. In July our family was on mission to England with long-time missionary friends, Eric & Lisa Simpson. And while in England Pam’s mom, Marilyn Shisler passed away after a brief hospitalization and some unexpected complications. Our whole family grew closer through…
Several years ago, pastor and author Mark Batterson wrote a book with the provocative title, Wild Goose Chase: Reclaiming the Adventure of Pursuing God. I remember raising a skeptical and judgmental eyebrow when I saw the title. It seemed a little irreverent to me, He based his title on a phrase that Celtic Christians used to characterize the leading of the Holy Spirit- following the Wild Goose. I think I reacted skeptically because “wild goose” kind of sounds like it…
One of the most ubiquitous symbols of the Appalachian Trail is the white blaze. A blaze is a distinctive stripe that is painted in obvious places along a hiking trail to let you know that you are on the right path. In Shenandoah National Park there tons of marked trails. There are blue blazes, red blazes and yellow blazes, but the white blaze is reserved for the granddaddy trail of them all, the AT which traverses completely through the park. …
…The sky over your head will be brass, and the earth beneath you iron. Deuteronomy 28:23 This past week I had coffee with Scott Heine, a pastor friend who has consistently reached out to me for years and especially since I stepped down from active pastoral ministry at the end of March. We met at Panera in Gainesville and I was about 1/2 way into my first mug of steaming joe when he stopped the chat and said, “So how…