Russellings of the Spirit

life

  • Happy birthday, Andy

    Yesterday was Andy’s birthday. His first 39 birthdays were celebrated here on earth. The last three have been celebrated in Andy’s new, celestial home.  Having the good fortune to be born exactly halfway between them, Andy was a childhood friend… Continue reading

  • Daring to Follow

    I just tried an experiment on Facebook to see what might happen. I didn’t originally intend to make this experiment the topic of a blog post, but the results were so interesting I just had to share them with y’all.… Continue reading

  • This Side of the Desk

    I just finished reading the book When Breath Becomes Air. I am still drying my eyes. It is the story of a brilliant, gifted neurosurgeon named Paul Kalanithi. Kalanithi seems to be on his way to an illustrious career as… Continue reading

  • Frozen People

    I knew it was coming, just as surely as the next episode of The Lone Ranger on Saturday morning TV. When I was a wee lad and we made the 415-mile trek to see my dad’s parents in St. Louis,… Continue reading

  • CHANGE

    What moves the world? What kind of force does it take To cause even the tiniest shudder? And alter – even microscopically – the unflinching orbit Of lives? Of fates? Of destinies? Of kingdoms? Of stars? Is it great beauty?… 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

  • Team Jesus

    I made my choice a long time ago. In the middle of one of the darkest times of my life… when every door seemed to be sealed shut… when my relationships only offered pain and resentment… when the future looked… Continue reading

  • “Let me OFF!”

    Well, it’s that time of year again. It is the time of year when the antennae of clergyfolk in the United Methodist Church are exquisitely attuned to every minor shift in the wind, every minute rise or fall in barometric… Continue reading

  • Saggy Clay

    “Yet, O Lord, you are our Father; we are the clay, and you are our potter; we are all the work of your hand.”(Isaiah 64:8, NRSV) One of my favorite courses in college was Pottery 101. We started out the class by… Continue reading

  • Soul Winter

    Yep. Just poked my head out the window and confirmed something I’ve suspected for about a month now. IT’S WINTER! (Unless, of course, you happen to live in the southern hemisphere). And by the looks of things, it plans to… Continue reading