Something occurred to me yesterday, as I was trying to salvage our beaten-up outdoor nativity scene . . . this feels familiar. Yes, familiar in that we have done this before, but also that this lighted Christmas representation is now looking like an accurate representation of my own faith. In that moment, it was a […]
Tag Archives: faith
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share via emailA First Grade Teacher, Steph Curry Sneakers, and God’s Weird Presence
When Luke was in the first grade, he was obsessed with Steph Curry (actually, he still is – he’s going into fifth grade and has a life-size “Fathead” of Curry on his bedroom wall). He wanted a pair of Under Armour high tops with Curry’s signature saying “I can do all things” written on the […]
Dale Riddle – A Birthday Tribute: The Power of a Picnic and a Portrait of Fearless Faith
My Dad is on the cusp of his 75th birthday. He has always believed he would die young. He’s had this “imminent death” expectation for as long as I can remember, which was a little mystifying as a kid, but now that I am an adult, I can appreciate it. My Dad has always talked […]
Confessions of a Former Church All-Star
When Keith and I first started dating, he used to joke that I was a “church all-star” because I was involved in so many different churchy things. Through the years I have worked with youth, taught Sunday school, sung in choirs and on worship teams, facilitated Bible studies, hosted small groups, helped with vacation Bible […]
Jesus is Hiding in the Bushes (the strangeness of evolving faith)
I saw a quote on Facebook recently, posted by Rachel Held Evans, and I couldn’t stop thinking about it. It resonated so deeply with me: “Faith is not a belief. Faith is what is left when your beliefs have all been blown to hell.”-Ram Dass Those of you who have followed this blog through the […]
Elves, Santa, God, Lies and Truth
Well, this is the Christmas of tragic discovery . . . Lela caught me moving the elf on the shelf! It was high drama, lots of tears, lots of questions. Even as she and Luke admitted they were skeptical (“I saw the elves for sale in the store, so I was suspicious”), they still want […]
The Blessing Of Uncertainty
My Dad, Dale Riddle, recently brought up a powerful experience that I felt compelled to share. Occasionally, God provides moments of clarity (which can also be moments that are perplexing and unsettling) that are immediately pivotal. We can no longer travel down the same road and are set on a different course (much like the […]
“A Tutor For Your Feelings” – Out of the Mouths of Babes
In my typical, can’t-help-myself pattern, I have been churning on the give-and-take of faith. We all want peace and contentment, but this seems to be a gift that comes on the other side of fear and adversity. It would be nice if God would just “dump” peace and joy (and all the fruit of the […]
Dare To Believe
It’s hard to describe the emotions that come over me when I think of these two. It’s easy to look at them now and forget what they have been through, but, on occasion, I’m stopped in my tracks, overcome with awe and gratitude. I had one of these moments recently, when we traveled to North […]
Living “The Gift”
When Carlie was younger, she chose crazy themes for birthday parties. My favorite was her sixth birthday, when she wanted to have a “mud and flower” party. We had mud pie contests, served “dirt cake,” planted flowers in little pots as party favors, and of course, had pools of mud for the kids to roll […]
