Humor gives us hope by approaching a situation from a new and unexpected perspective. When done properly - retaining respect for all involved - it can offer relief from the serious frame of mind in which we may find ourselves. Humor is harder and more elegant than wit (I’m good...
Practicing Hope – By Tracy Taubert. Member Blog, Day 14
My niece, along with three girlfriends, recently completed a cross-country bicycle trip from San Francisco to St. Augustine, FL. In addition to logging over 5,000 miles in three months on two wheels, they accumulated a wealth of wonderful stories of hope and faith to share. First of all, they biked...
Practice Hope – By Paula Hutchinson. Member Blog, Day 13
God’s love shines light into my life. Even when I am caught up in the darkness of fear, sadness, or general unease that I can’t quite name, I’ve learned there are always glimmers of hope and goodness that are present if I’m awake and willing to look for them. The...
Practice Hope – By Pat Derry. Member Blog, Day 12
It didn’t seem possible! Suddenly I was forced to sit quietly at home, leaving the work I loved! But vertigo was relentless; conversing for an hour was too much. I reluctantly accepted my new reality. My daughter became my guardian angel, and the care and prayers of family and church...
Writing Is An Act of Hope – By Martha Wegner. Member Blog, Day 11
“I feel that writing is an act of hope, a sort of communion with our fellow [human beings].” - Isabelle Allende Last year, I made a commitment to put my Advent practice to work in a concrete and tangible way. My plan was to choose one of the Advent themes,...
Practice Hope – By Karen Earhuff. Member Blog, Day 10
Thirteen years ago I had the most severe headache of my life. I was experiencing the bursting of a brain aneurysm. I went through surgery where 2 aneurysms were closed with titanium clips. I was in a sorry state, physically and mentally and spent 31 days at St. Joseph’s ICU....
Practice Hope – By Jayne Hovda. Member Blog, Day 9
I had been struggling with the concept of practicing hope because I was stuck on the idea that I first had to find hope. This is easy when I make my world small and look within my family and neighborhood because I am blessed in my life. The difficulty comes...
Practice Hope – By John Teipel. Member Blog, Day 8
I was shocked! As a young 30-year-old runner, someone who’d been physically active and healthy all my life, I was stunned in 1999 when I felt like I was having a heart attack. In follow-up with a cardiologist, I learned that I needed a mitral valve replacement. No problem –...
Practice Hope – By Garth Englund. Member Blog, Day 7
The world needs a little more hope. The discernment of my call to Seminary was, at a fundamental level, centered on a desire to help bring God’s hope shown in Jesus Christ to a world in need. Too often, unfortunately, rather than living as examples of hope, the followers of...
Practicing Hope in the Work I Do For Pay – By Erika Taibl. Member blog post, Day 6
I changed jobs this year. For three years, I worked in communications for a Fortune 200 food and agriculture company. I had challenging and good work to do. I had opportunities to learn and grow. I worked with talented people. I was compensated well. I was rising in the company,...