Serve by Design

Our pastors often begin worship services with this phrase that calls the congregation to worship, “Let’s quiet our minds and center our thoughts.” Although it is unusual, there are still times when an occasional distraction occurs. Such was the case, during a recent sermon, when the ring tone of a congregant’s cell phone startled us by repeatedly playing the theme song from Gilligan’s Island. I was not alone in chuckling about the obvious distraction. 😊 Ringtone Surprise! Image: dreamstime.com During the final week of Advent, there is a hectic rush up to the “Big Day!” In these days, I find myself stressed and more in need of “quieting and centering” to protect my emotional and spiritual well-being. As many of us know, hosting a family gathering means that there are many necessary tasks that can potentially bring distractions from the blessed spirit of the Christmas season. These family gatherings require numerous tasks to be performed. For me, there are still several boxes to check...

During these days of Advent, I have been thinking about heaven. It’s funny how the mind works. It surprises me in strange ways. I popped into a local eatery on North Grand, Springfield recently. Our daughter and her family think this place has the best burgers in central Illinois. I must admit that their smash burgers and custard are something special. I do savor those crispy fried edges on the double cheese! Don’t tell Monique! Image: Krekel's Custard & Hamburgers I looked up on the tabletop and noticed a catchy advertisement on the napkin holder. It said, “Heaven is a Brown Paper Sack!” And appropriately so, this restaurant does a lot of take-out orders where you will see patrons clutching their brown paper bags filled with burgers and fries. While this isn’t the best food for your health, you can cherish “heavenly thoughts” of delicious greasiness in each bite! There is another notable brown bag establishment that I like on South Grand that stuffs its delicious fried fish ...

It was a day or two before Thanksgiving that our oldest granddaughter, Chloe, popped the question, "Poppi, when are you decorating your Christmas tree?" This grand is always jazzed about Christmas! Each year, since she was a little girl, Chloe Michelle has helped her Mimi and me with Christmas decorating. If you knew that she already had her room decorations up on November 1st, you can imagine that she was more than a little anxious to help her grandparents "catch up" to the Christmas Season! Inspecting Charlie's Gingerbread House! I am a stickler about not putting up our decorations until Thanksgiving Day is over. Although I enjoy the ambience of a well-decorated family room with a beautifully lighted tree adorned with keepsake ornaments, garlands and red bows above the entry ways, and greenery threaded with red stringed beads on the mantle, I don't like to hurry into Christmas! So, Friday or Saturday after "Turkey Day" is soon enough for me! It w...

This past weekend, we have been dealing with our first snowfall of the season. It has been a heavy, wet snow that has steadily blanketed our village with an impressive eight and a half inches of accumulated snow. The day before, on Friday, our granddaughter, Chloe, helped us put the ornaments on the tree and then we did some last-minute grocery shopping. It was the calm before the storm, and we were getting prepared should we be snowed in for the weekend! Image credit: www.freepik.com On Saturday, as the snow began falling, Monique and I sat comfortably in the family room admiring our Christmas decorations. The lights on the tree and mantle were having their usual seasonal effect. It was just after one o’clock as I was entering a hypnotic state and was almost asleep when the first of two back-to-back thunderous claps jolted me fully awake. Monique was startled as well and exclaimed, “WHAT…WAS… THAT?” While still processing what I had heard, I tentatively replied, “That was thunder! But...