Browsing Blezard, Rob
The good old days before credit cards …
‘IT’S PERSONAL’ BLOG – For a week and a half my wallet was nowhere to be found, so I spent time in the financial reality I enjoyed in the 1970s, before ATMs made cash available anywhere at the touch of a button, and before credit cards were easy to obtain – or at least for […]
No power for worship?
‘It’s Personal’ Blog
When Hurricane Irene knocked out power on a Sunday morning we had to cancel worship. But is the electric company the real source of our power for worship? Of course not, but many churches hold services even though they seem “off the grid” of the Holy Spirit. (Rob Blezard photo.)
What I Learned on My Sabbatical
When Pastor Jim Ortberg, editor-at-large of Leadership Journal, went on a seven-week sabbatical, he got a lot more than just some rest and relaxation. He learned a lesson on how to live. His advice speaks to all pastors and people of God. (Photo “Reflections in a Coffee Cup” by Gunjan Karun used by Creative Commons […]
Travels with Charlie
‘It’s Personal’ Blog My spiritual life has recently been invigorated by a Springer Spaniel with an inquisitive mind, a super-sensitive nose and unwavering insistence. Charlie is a new addition to the household, and has daily needs that I must help him fulfill, lest my carpet and hardwood floors suffer the consequences. Charlie must be walked […]
Are You Spiritually Fit?
‘IT’S PERSONAL’ Blog Catching her breath at the treadmill next to me, the woman in the pink tee shirt asked how long before she would see “results.†It was her first workout, she explained, and she was excited. Like a lot of people who come to the fitness room at the local YWCA, she was […]
Thirsting for God
‘IT’S PERSONAL’ Blog For about four long weeks, during the hottest part of a hot summer, rain avoided Adams County in south-central Pennsylvania, where I live. The broiling sun toasted our lawns brown and turned the blades of grass brittle and spiky. The lush green of the trees dulled and the branches and stems drooped. […]
Prescription for Better Health
‘IT’S PERSONAL’ Blog As America’s percentage of overweight and obese people continues to rise, nutritionists and health care professionals tell us we need to eat better, reducing consumption of fatty and sugary processed foods, and increasing our intake of fresh fruits and vegetables. In fact, in Massachusetts and Maine doctors are “prescribing†vegetables for low-income […]
Mary Enters the Kingdom
LECTIONARY REFLECTION
Sunday, Aug. 15, 2010
Mary, Mother of Our Lord
Advent in August? The Scripture for the festival of the Assumption of Mary takes the Magnificat out of its Christmasy context. Amid Lukan readings in Ordinary Time, it speaks even more loudly about God’s agenda.
Slow-Cooker Spirituality
IT’S PERSONAL Blog When I lived in in Chicago, my neighbors cooked real barbecue. Not the “sloppy joes†that passes for “barbecue†in Pennsylvania (where I live), or the 15-minutes-on-the grill treatment that most of us do at backyard cookouts. I’m talking about nice cuts of meat barbecued s-l-o-w-l-y to tasty perfection. An African American […]
Holy Laughter
IT’S PERSONAL blog Our mouths were filled with laughter, our tongues with songs of joy. Then it was said among the nations, “The LORD has done great things for them.†Psalm 126:2 A fellow Christian once told me that God had no sense of humor. “Nowhere,†he said sanctimoniously, “does the Bible record that the […]
