The Word and His Pen

 Moving to America naturally has brought along a lot of culture shock.  Culture shock is very hard to deal with. As I grew up we only visited America every couple years, just for a few months, then we would go back home. So, American culture is largely foreign to me. Moving to a foreign culture that is so vastly different than the one I grew up in is very hard! There are so many frustrating days and instances that make me just want to go home where things were easier. Where things made sense. There are days of struggling, frustration, crying, and wanting to go home. There are learning days where different things are explain to the point where they finally click in my brain a little bit more. And then there are days where I have to make choices about which cultural mindset I want to work in, often I choose a mix. Because both cultures and countries have their flaws, which is the perk of mixing cultures, you can pick the best of both worlds.  Anyway, one big layer of culture shock that I

Easter Sunday our church was able to meet all together in person. The worship was fantastic, but in the midst of it a thought struck me that leads to this blog post. In the midst of wonderful worship there was a tiny fraction of sadness for me. I can’t clap. Back home worship was very energetic, drums, clapping, dancing, and loud singing. So that is a big part of what I’m used to and for now with a paralyzed arm I can’t clap. So, that was one of the times that I miss having both hands. I use the American Sign Language sign for applause which is to raise your hand straight up and turn your wrist back and forth. But it’s not the same as clapping.  So, that thought led me to this question. How many things are constantly taken for granted?  I’m going to narrow that down to what I’m asking myself. What have I taken for granted?  Because if we were going to look at the broader question truly, it is common in this moment where I am, for life to completely be taken for granted. Water, food, sh

 So, this post might be a little bit late, but only a little.  Easter. The Son of God coming down to earth to bring the Kingdom of God to earth, died on a cross, and rose again three days later.  So what does that mean? What does it mean today? How did it change the world? How did the Son of God change the world by dying and coming to life again? A few thousand years before that humans chose sin over what God told us to do. When we took on sin it made a barrier between the natural relationship we had with God. God being holy separates Himself from sin.  For a few thousand years sin and darkness ruled the earth but the Light of God was always present even in the smallest of ways.  Then it was time for God to send His only Son to die for the children who had left their Father and sold themselves into slavery to darkness. We, human beings, had unknowingly given ourselves over to darkness. Darkness held us as slaves.  God did not want the children that He lovingly created to be bound to da

 Thud. Thud. Thud. Then the ground shook. I woke up with a gasp and the shaking stopped. For a moment I was confused. Where was I? Where was Jesus? Then everything came flooding back with painful force. “Oh…” I moaned aloud as tears sprung to my eyes anew. Perhaps too loud. I looked around but the guards were nowhere to be seen.  Why had the ground been shaking? I looked up at the sky. The stars were fading, and the sky was turning a soft gray before dawn.  I took a deep breath, and another. Then I looked around cautiously. I saw nothing different even though the ground had been shaken. So, I stood up slowly, groaning slightly with the pain of a tense and bruised body. “It’ll be over with soon.” I muttered shakily to myself. I carefully looked about once more. No one was around. I need to get this over with quickly. I cannot stand much more pain.   I took a deep breath and began climbing up the tree to a sturdy forked branch about midway up the tree. I paused once I reached the branch.

 This is the continuation of my Easter season series.  I awake from my fitful sleep the next morning, Sabbath morning.  A thick blanket of fog hovers in the air. Soldiers stand guard over the tomb. They came and sealed the cave. Because Jesus said that He would arise in three days, so they did not want one of His followers to come take His body and say that He had risen.  The world is silent. People are in their homes preparing for Sabbath. Many of us who have been saved are hiding. Hiding in fear and sadness. I would be hiding away, safe from the soldiers but I keep hearing His voice. "Go to a place called Joseph's Tomb and wait there for three days. Remember, True Love never dies. Go now!" Over and over again.  True Love never dies... Did He know what was going to happen? My tears continued falling. I wanted to scream but I dared not with the soldiers in front of the tomb. I was underneath some trees beside the tomb, they didn't know that I was there.  One of them t

So, as I have said before, I often write easiest in realistic fiction style. Mostly I do this with Biblical themes and stories. I love doing it with Mary Magdalene's story, so this has a bit of her story weaved in. With stories like this one, that I have written a ton of over the years, I'm working on, by the power of God, bringing them together into a book. So, this would be a taste of what one of my books will sound like.   This is an Easter series I'm doing. So, today, tomorrow, Easter, and Monday I will have posts out in this series.  ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------  Brokenness. This world is broken. What else should I expect? I try to run. They bring me back and shove more poison down my throat until I’m temporarily paralyzed. We must surrender to the darkness. It owns us. I don’t know why I keep trying to run, but I do. I guess I want to keep searching for even a candle flame o