On the Lord’s Day Mom and Dad usually communicate with us. Mom sends a prayer to all her preacher boys and family early in the morning. There are really a bunch of us. About seven preachers in the family if I am counting right. I always look forward to them. She sent me this poem this morning – . I knew immediately I had to share it with each of you:

If peace be in the heart,
The wildest winter storm is full of solemn beauty.
The midnight flash but shows the path …

Andrew Schrader is about Hope’s age. We lived together in the Character Inn for a while in Flint, Michigan. Andrew and Hope were about five at the time. He was an adorable little boy. When he got excited he had the sweetest way of not being able to get his words out. It is like they would all jam up and then spill out once.
One day he ran up to me in the lobby and he said; “Mr. Pierpont, is-is-is-is it OK if-if-if-if I hold Hope’s hand? When-when-when-when I …

My cousin Di has Facebook now. When we were kids we saw each other regularly. We have our own families now and our own lives so we only see each other when someone dies, which is very sad. It was good to connect on Facebook. I scrolled through her pictures. We look a lot alike. We could pass for brother and sister. I read her interests. One of them made me smile. She has always been a bright girl, quick-witted and verbal. Even as a child she would commonly read …

My good friend Joe has a great sense of humor. He overheard me talking about the wonders of the night sky and sent me this: Wonders of the Night Sky.

I picked this up from Todd Wilson’s Family Man Newsletter… which I love:
“Guys, I am dad of 7, well 6 now. I took my 20-year-old to Air Force Basic training today – WOW! I haven’t had a flood of emotion like that since they were all born. We have the 20(b), 14(g), 12(b), 7(g), 5(g), 4(b), 2(g) and I love them all, as I am sure you all do.
I felt regret, more than anything else, as I drove away today. I can remember being …

Last night I noticed three young teens horsing around with skateboards over in Riverview. They were wearing the uniform of rebellion. They were looking like they were eager to get involved in something questionable. They looked like trouble. They looked like they were impressing each other with profanities. They looked like they were disrespectful types. They looked like the kind of kids that destroy public property. They were the kind of kids you don’t really want hanging around your business discouraging the paying customers. They stared at us as if …

Autumn is always a time that I am reminded of the brevity of life and how fragile it is. My friend Pastor Dan Cummings has been journaling from his bed of affliction. It would be worth your time to read-though his most recent thoughts. Here is one that really made me stop and think:

“7. As I get older I would rather listen to God than talk, I would rather listen to Him than “study” Him – He is no academic subject to be mastered – He is a person …

Have you heard the rice myth? When poor little birds eat rice their little tummys swell and they die in writhing agony.
Read all about it. Isn’t it curious how many of the same “earth conscious” people that worry about little bird tummys and litter–labor with all their might to pass legislation and elect people to ensure that murder and dismemberment of the unborn remain legal?
Photo by Mandy Novotny Click Mandy’s photo for the big version.

Sheldon and Jean VanAuken – Jean’s maiden name was Davis so he called her Davy and friends called him Van – had a dream as newlyweds. They wanted to sail together throughout the world. They bought a sail boat with inheritance money and named it Grey Goose. They named their sailboat after a bird that mates for life and will usually not mate again after the death of their partner. Their marriage ended when Davy died in her thirties. Van never remarried. Their marriage was short, but it was …