Spiritual Growth

I recently read a story about the power of hope. Scientists that were doing a study on how long Norwegian wharf rats could swim.  For the study, the scientists took some of these rats and placed each of them in a tub of water. They…

To feel empty is not usually a pleasant feeling, and yet sometimes it’s necessary. Last Saturday night I had dinner with some friends at an awesome Mexican restaurant. We pigged out on chips and salsa, beef, chicken, and amazing enchiladas. We ended the dinner with…

  One story from Christmas past helps me understand what it means to be made new in God’s kingdom. When it came to Christmas presents, I never knew what to get for my dad. It seemed an impossible task to find something he actually wanted…

The Black Dragon Pool in Lijiang, China was broken. All the tourist guides and travel books I read about Lijiang told me to visit this beautiful site where you could see the Jade Dragon Snow Mountain reflected in a pool of clear blue water. Indeed,…

The city of Lijiang in the Yunnan province of China is lovely, intriguing, and….. fake. My husband and I heard from several people that this ancient Chinese city was worth the trip. I became excited about visiting this historic landmark when I saw pictures of…

Anyone who knows me well, knows that I love mountains. I love to ski in the mountains, hike in the mountains, and simply gaze at mountains. So one of the reasons I was particularly excited about my recent trip to China was that we were…

When my husband and I visited the beautiful island of Kauai, we arrived at our resort at night. We could tell our building was near the ocean, but didn’t realize until the next morning that our room was only steps away from the beach. We…

Joy can be an elusive quality. What is the best way to find joy? Oh, there are days when joy fills my heart like the air filling a hot-air balloon lifting me to new heights: Seeing my husband-to-be at the end of the aisle as…