A "free range" pastor, counselor, author

Tag Stories

The Other Side of the Hedge

The Other Side of the Hedge (by E. M. Forster 1911) My pedometer told me that I was twenty-five; and, though it is a shocking thing to stop walking, I was so tired that I sat down on a milestone… Continue Reading →

Angel in the Marble

Angel in the Marble It was Michelangelo who said: “Every block of stone has a statue inside it and it is the task of the sculptor to discover it. I saw the angel in the marble and carved until I… Continue Reading →

Never Been Unloved

Never Been Unloved. Even if you are feeling: unfaithful unworthy unrighteious unmerciful unreachable unwilling undesirable unwise unsure unmended uneasy unapproachable unexceptional undecided unqualified unaware unfair unfit You have never been unloved nor will you ever be. “But the great thing… Continue Reading →

God in Between

God in Between “Once there was a town at the foot of a hill with no roads and almost no windows. Without roads the people of the town had nowhere to go, and they wondered what was on the other… Continue Reading →

This Too Shall Pass

This Too Shall Pass. During the festive Passover meal with his ministers, King Solomon teased Benaiah son of Jehoiada, his arrogant Chief of Army. “Benaiah, I was told that there is a special ring that has a special power. It… Continue Reading →

The Prisoner Who Was Free

There was a prisoner who was held in a cell for many years. Every day at a certain time the jailer would come and open up the door, set down a plate of food, close the door leaving the prisoner… Continue Reading →

You Are Beautiful

As you watch this video, you’ll see some that can help but smile, you’ll see others that find it hard to take in, and you’ll see others who don’t know how to respond.  What if this statement was deeper than… Continue Reading →

Believe It

Believe It. The seeker said to God: “Tell me, tell me something I can treasure and remember.” And God said “I love you. I love you. I love you.” The seeker replied: “Is that all? Tell me something else.” And… Continue Reading →

Remembering God

Remembering God. There was a three-year-old girl who was the only child in her family. Her mom was pregnant, and this three-year-old girl was very excited about having a baby in the house. The day comes when the mother-to-be goes… Continue Reading →

Pray Rain

Pray Rain (by Gregg Braden) Back in the early ’90s, I was living in the high desert of northern New Mexico. This was during one of the worst droughts that the Southwest had ever recorded. The elders in the native… Continue Reading →

Poor or Rich?

Poor or Rich? One day a father of a very wealthy family took his son on a trip to a farm with the firm purpose of showing his son how poor people live. They spent a couple of days and… Continue Reading →

On One Foot

On One Foot A rather eccentric looking young man wearing an old brown suit and holding a small, worn, stickered suitcase walked into the center of the city, spun around a few times in the middle of one of the… Continue Reading →

Stop It!

Stop It! I think it was Abraham Lincoln who said, “Most people are about as happy as they make up their mind to be.”  It often amazes me how miserable I can make myself feel by what I think.  That’s… Continue Reading →

The Lion Who Believed He Was a Sheep

The Lion Who Believed He Was a Sheep. One day a farmer was walking back from the forest. He came across a little lion cub. So, he brought the lion cub back home, gave it milk, water, some food. Didn’t… Continue Reading →

The Messiah in Disguise

The Messiah in Disguise. A monastery had fallen on hard times. It was once part of a great order which, as a result of religious persecution lost all its branches. It was decimated to the extent that there were only… Continue Reading →

A Party for a Prostitute

A Party for a Prostitute.  (By Tony Campolo in “The Kingdom of God is a Party). If you live on the East Coast and travel to Hawaii, you know that there is a time difference that makes three o’clock in… Continue Reading →

Missing Love

Missing Love. This is an “oldie but a goodie” and one of my favorite songs.  I love the melody, the voice, the music, the feel of it. It summarizes a part of my journey and is also an invitation to… Continue Reading →

It’s Good to be Dull

It’s Good to be Dull. I watched this video recently and smiled, laughed and chuckled all the way through.  So, I think it’s worthy of making my website as a spiritual reminder.  Always note when you laugh and smile –… Continue Reading →

Pete the Duck

Pete the Duck. One morning there was a duck named Pete on the side of a path quacking. A professional singer walked by. Upon hearing him she said, “How nice of you to sing me a morning song, Pete.” A… Continue Reading →

The Struggling Butterfly

The Struggling Butterfly (Attributed to Henry Miller) One day in India, a young boy walked up to a Guru or wise man, and asked what the man was looking at. The Guru responded “I am looking at a Chrysalis, and… Continue Reading →

Why Were You Not Zusya?

Why Were You Not Zusya? There is a tale of a Hassidic rabbi named Zusya. He was a timid man, a man who concealed more than he revealed. One day Zusya stood before his congregation and he said: When I… Continue Reading →

Your Breath

Your Breath. An average person takes 16 breaths a minute, 960 an hour, 23,040 a day, 8,409,600 a year. How many of those do we take for granted? Someday we’ll take our last. What an important reminder to be aware… Continue Reading →

Peony Buds

Peony Buds. “‘Peony hugging,’ I think to myself as I move from clump to clump. Each place I become more aware of the hard and heavy buds. Their weight has already begun to bend the stems toward the ground. In… Continue Reading →

Let Down Your Bucket

Let Down Your Bucket.  It seems that there was a party of sailors who were shipwrecked and drifting in the Atlantic Ocean in an open rescue boat. They’d been drifting for several days, had run out of water, and were… Continue Reading →

When Grieving the Loss of a Dog

When grieving the loss of a dog – poems and reflections to help you grieve well.  I put this together for those I know who are grieving the loss of one of their best friends.  It’s a hard truth to remember… Continue Reading →

The Eagle Who Thought He Was a Chicken

The Eagle Who Thought He Was a Chicken. A fable is told about an eagle who thought he was a chicken. When the eagle was very small, he fell from the safety of his nest. A chicken farmer found the… Continue Reading →

The Story of the Golden Buddha

The Story of the Golden Buddha. Many years ago in Thailand there is a temple that was called the temple of the Golden Buddha. And there was a huge statue of Golden Buddha. And word came to this village where… Continue Reading →

Fellowship of the Unashamed

Fellowship of the Unashamed. The author is unknown, but is believed to be a young pastor in Zimbabwe who was martyred for his faith in Jesus Christ. It was found in his study: “I’m part of the fellowship of the… Continue Reading →

The Game of Religion

The Game of Religion. A man arriving at the proverbial Pearly Gates is unsure what to do. Do I simply walk in? he wonders. St. Peter recognizes the look of consternation on the man’s face, approaches, and asks him if… Continue Reading →

Just Laugh, Walter!

Just laugh? Why? Because, laughter is the best medicine.  Or as Prov. 17:33 says, “A Cheerful heart is good medicine.” This scene from the “Money Pit” never fails to make me laugh.  Please watch it til the very end.  Do… Continue Reading →

Eustace Scrubb the Dragon Meets Alsan

Eustace Scrubb the Dragon Meets Alsan (In the book, “Voyage of the Dawn Treader” by C.S. Lewis, Eustace Scrubb comes upon a dragon’s lair and in trying to take the treasure, turns into a dragon himself. He eventually is able… Continue Reading →

I’d Pick More Daisies

I’d Pick More Daisies (by Nadine Stair) If I had my life to live over, I’d dare to make more mistakes next time. I’d relax, I would limber up. I would be sillier than I have been this trip. I… Continue Reading →

Prime the Pump First

Prime the Pump First. There was a man who got lost in the desert. After wandering around for a long time his throat became very dry, about that time he saw a little shack in the distance. He made his… Continue Reading →

A Tandem Bike Ride With God

A Tandem Bike Ride With God I used to think of God as my observer, my judge, keeping track of the things I did wrong, so as to know whether I merited heaven or hell when I die. He was… Continue Reading →

Be Kind to Yourself

Be Kind to Yourself?! We’re pretty good at beating ourselves up, aren’t we? What if you were the one who was most in need of your own kindness and love? What if that was the key to the mending of… Continue Reading →

The Great Blondin

The Great Blondin. Can you imagine a tightrope stretched over a quarter of a mile and spanning the breadth of Niagara Falls? The thundering sound of the pounding water drowning out all other sounds as you watch a man step… Continue Reading →

Judas and Jesus Meet Again

Judas and Jesus Meet Again Throughout the centuries, we’ve all been Judas.  Betraying God in a multitude and myriad of ways.  If there is no grace, forgiveness and hope for him, there is none for any of us.  Based on… Continue Reading →

License Plate Message

License Plate Message “I remember sitting parked by the roadside once, terribly depressed and afraid about my daughter’s illness and what was going on in our family, when out of nowhere a car came along down the highway with a… Continue Reading →

The Other Seven Wonders

The Other Seven Wonders A group of students were asked to list what they thought were the present “Seven Wonders of the World.” Though there were some disagreements, the following received the most votes: Egypt’s Great Pyramids Taj Mahal Grand… Continue Reading →

The Black Dot

The Black Dot One day a professor entered the classroom and asked his students to prepare for a surprise test. They waited anxiously at their desks for the test to begin. The professor handed out the question paper, with the… Continue Reading →

Can It Get Any Worse?

A poor man lived with his wife and six children in a very small one-room house. They were always getting in each other’s way and there was so little space they could hardly breathe! Finally the man could stand it… Continue Reading →

100 Years of Beauty

100 Years of Beauty: Aging Video. Every young couple, before getting married should watch this video.  It’s wonderful.  When we’re young we concentrate on the outward beauty, the skin, the form of the one we love.  But isn’t there something… Continue Reading →

100 Years

100 Years (by Five for Fighting). How quickly time flies, but we often don’t even notice it.  How we take for granted that we’ll have many more wonderful years to come.  How we so easily lose perspective and take all… Continue Reading →

Chocolate Meditation – Practice in Savoring Your Life

Chocolate Meditation Perhaps you have some chocolate laying around today, the day after Valentines day.  Enjoy it!  Perhaps you’ll want to add to the enjoyment and appreciation of it with this mindfulness meditation that teaches us the importance of savoring the… Continue Reading →

The Last Letter of Major Sullivan Ballou – “Dear Sarah”

The following is a letter written by Maj. Sullivan Ballou to his wife Sarah at home in Rhode Island. Ballou died a week later, at the First Battle of Bull Run. He was 32.  A beautiful letter th...

Twisted Mouth

Twisted Mouth (Written by Surgeon Richard Selzer MD) I stand by the bed where a young woman lies, her face postoperative, her mouth twisted in palsy, clownish. A tiny twig of the facial nerve, the one to the muscles of… Continue Reading →

Not a One!

Not a One! Chad was a shy, quiet little boy. One day he came home and told his mother that he’d like to make a valentine for everyone in his class. Her heart sank. She thought, “I wish he wouldn’t… Continue Reading →

“Danny & Annie” A True Love Story

Danny Perasa and his wife, Annie, came to StoryCorps to recount their twenty-seven-year romance. As they remember their life together from their first date to Danny's final days with terminal can...

I Am Light

A Reflection on: "I Am Light." A beautiful song to help you remember who you truly are. You and I suffer from spiritual amnesia! We have forgotten who we are, why we are here and how to li...

A Poem in a Bar – My Worst Day Ever?

A Poem in a Bar – My Worst Day Ever? Today was the absolute worst day ever And don’t try to convince me that There’s something good in every day Because, when you take a closer look, This world is… Continue Reading →

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