Russellings of the Spirit

COVID-19

  • Trusting the Master Mapmaker

    I am not exactly sure when it started, but for a very long time I’ve had a deep fascination with MAPS. I remember my very real excitement when – at the age of eight or nine – my grandfather handed… Continue reading

  • Lockdown Freedom

    Yesterday kind of sucked. It was day 4,845,154 of the Great Lockdown of 2020 (not that anyone is counting, of course). It was another day of wearing our masks in public, another day of super-fastidious hand washing, another day of… Continue reading

  • “We’re All In This Together!”

    Yes, we are. But in lots of ways, no, we absolutely are not. This morning on NPR I heard the story of Daniel Garcia of Houston, Texas. (https://www.npr.org/2020/07/18/892593769/texas-man-on-what-its-like-being-evicted-during-the-covid-19-pandemic). And it broke me. Garcia is 46 years old. He was laid… Continue reading

  • The Challenge of Vigilance

    “Keep awake therefore, for you do not know on what day your Lord is coming.” Matthew 24:42, NRSV It was just a quick little trip into the convenience store. We needed some ice for our trip back from the mountains. Just… Continue reading

  • Caution? or Fear?

    “For God has not given us a spirit of fear and timidity, but of power, love, and self-discipline.” (2 Timothy 1:7, NLT) Last night I was in our kitchen making a salad. No biggie. After chopping the tomatoes, I realized I still needed a few… Continue reading

  • It Certainly is Puzzling

    “… because we look not at what can be seen but at what cannot be seen; for what can be seen is temporary, but what cannot be seen is eternal.” 2 Corinthians 4:18, NRSV During this time of pandemic, jigsaw… Continue reading

  • It’s a Group Thing

    “What then shall we say, brothers and sisters? When you come together, each of you has a hymn, or a word of instruction, a revelation, a tongue or an interpretation.” (1 Corinthians 14:26, NRSV) Exercise – even in the best… Continue reading

  • Take Hope

    “But hope that is seen is no hope at all. Who hopes for what they already have?” Romans 8:24, NRSV. Hope is a precious commodity these days. On some days, it can be harder to find than that ever-elusive toilet paper. We squint and look at the… Continue reading

  • Safe at home?

    Let me ask you: how safe do you feel right now? I will answer first by confessing that most of the time, I feel pretty safe. My safety, I am well aware, derives largely from the privilege I enjoy as… Continue reading

  • A Letter from Inside…

    Dear Mom; Well, it’s been one month now since they locked me up and this is the first time I’ve sat down and written to you. I’m really sorry about that! It’s just that… well, honestly, I can’t come up… Continue reading