~by Rabbi Danya Ruttenberg When my friend Laurence had his first kid — a few years before I had mine — he shared with me one of his newfound secrets: “You know you’re a parent,” he said, “when you find yourself saying, ‘Oh, man. That’s so disgusting’ at least once a day.” But my partner and I … Continue reading
–By Donald Hanna The Bible is pure genius. From time to time I’m reminded about just how much this is the case. Last Sunday, as I read again the story of Ahab and Jehoshaphat debating about whether or not to go to war, I found myself smiling from ear to ear. After consulting 400 prophets … Continue reading
*This week’s Monday post veers from our regular family liturgy to offer this review of a book that will be of interest to Practicing Families readers. More than Enough: Living Abundantly in a Culture of Excess by Lee Hull Moses. Westminster Johnn Knox Press: Louisville, 2016 (136 pages) A while back I had an idea … Continue reading
~ by Christine Gough Vocabulary and shades of meaning make my heart skip a beat. The 3rd grade teacher in me salivates a bit over the day when we get to pull out the thesauri and find the perfect word for our narratives. To push away from using mundane, overused vocabulary in favor of verbiage … Continue reading
–By Keeva Kase Faith and gratitude are maidservants of each other. Without one you lose the other. For many parents however, the moments of glory do not balance out the fuzziness of parenting, and sometimes the fuzz becomes overwhelming. Fuzzy turns to foggy, foggy turns to fear, and fear to failure. With two kids, two working parents, and little sleep, … Continue reading
~by Jill Clingan A couple of months ago I received an email from a friend, fellow teacher, and co-worker that said this: I have something fun for you to help with if you have time. I’m developing a new assignment in 9A, and I need a sample to share. Would you like to write … Continue reading
by Erika Marksbury An older man, let’s call him Abraham, has befriended my son, Oscar. Abraham attends the same church we do. I’m the pastor, so there’s always stuff to do afterwards, and my kids are left to fend for themselves, throwing paper airplanes off the balcony, seeing if they can scrounge up more cookies, … Continue reading
by Kimberly Knowle-Zeller Scripture: Hebrews 11:29-12:2 By faith the people passed through the Red Sea as if it were dry land, but when the Egyptians attempted to do so they were drowned. By faith the walls of Jericho fell after they had been encircled for seven days. By faith Rahab the prostitute did not … Continue reading
~ by Dena Hobbs My daughter came to us from China at 13 months old not speaking a word of English. My husband stayed at home with her during her first year in our family and her language bloomed under his care. I stayed at home with her during her second year with us, and … Continue reading
by Joanna Harader Scripture: Hebrews 11:1-3, 8-16 Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen. Indeed, by faith our ancestors received approval. By faith we understand that the worlds were prepared by the word of God, so that what is seen was made from things that are not … Continue reading
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