Many different traditions hover over our carol repertoire like the stars on Christmas Eve. This one is French, rooted in the music of the nineteenth-century Catholic Church, half-opera, half-soirée, designed to echo cavernously round the gloomy spaces of some vast Gothic church, reverently bellowed by a trained opera singer, all vibrato and shirt frills, accompanied…
Prayer
Guideposts for Thanksgiving
The end of a matter is better than its beginning, and patience is better than pride. — Ecclesiastes 7:8 NIV I want to completely declutter the basement before Thanksgiving,” my wife, Pat, said while we were out for a walk. “I have a lot of stuff going on…. Why do we need to do…
Bible
Jesus Over Everything: Putting God First
Sign up here! He is before all things, and in Him all things hold together. — Colossians 1:17 NIV WELCOME Leader, read aloud to the group. Today we’re talking about something beautiful and powerful: what it means to live a Jesus over everything kind of life. We’ll explore the mindsets that often keep us…
Women
The Rock, the Road, and the Rabbi: Beginning the Journey
The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases; His mercies never come to an end; they are new every morning; great is Your faithfulness. — Lamentations 3:22-23 ESV Before I (Kathie Lee) began my new job as co-host of the fourth hour of The Today Show in 2008, I felt the Lord tugging at my spirit…
Men
Flyover: The Stories We’ve Missed
Thanksgiving offers us an annual pause from the pace of life to return to places we do not often visit and gather with people we do not often see. Indeed, I live in what some call a “flyover state” — Minnesota — a placed that many visitors fly over while hopping coast to coast.…
Family
F is for Fall Fun
Fall is my favorite season! I think I’d go in mourning if I ever had to move to an area of the world that doesn’t experience the crisp, cool breezes and vibrant colors and scents of autumn! What’s not to love? There are so many wonderful things to experience and eat during the fall—everything from…
