By Davalynn Spencer @davalynnspencer March is Women’s History Month. Several national sponsors have added their support in “commemorating and encouraging the study, observance, and celebration of the vital role of women in American history.” It’s an interesting topic, and more can be learned about it at the Women’s
By Davalynn Spencer @davalynnspencer A small natural disaster created a major inconvenience here a few years ago. On national radar it was a blip. Locally it was a rockslide. Literally. Seven thousand tons of rock slipped off the mountain and across U.S. Highway 50 like a broken string
By Davalynn Spencer @davalynnspencer A friend of mine shared plans to participate in a spiritual retreat called Walk to Emmaus. As we visited about the weekend event, I prayed it would be one of personal revelation. Personal revelation is exactly what happened in the gospel account of two
By Davalynn Spencer @davalynnspencer “No waiting on checkout aisle number three.” I squeezed the red plastic handle of my shopping cart and held my ground. The frenzy around me resembled the Indy 500 at the drop of a green flag as shoppers rushed to be first in the
By Davalynn Spencer @davalynnspencer Do you have a Valentine? I believe we all do, whether we realize it or not. I’m not talking about someone to whom we’ve given our hearts in the romantic sense, but someone who epitomizes Christian love in our life. Tradition says Valentine’s Day
By Davalynn Spencer @davalynnspencer When my youngest granddaughter plays hide-and-seek with her daddy, she sees things only from her perspective. She has no idea she’s giving away her whereabouts. Perhaps in her innocence she reasons like the cartoon ostrich: “If I can’t see them, they can’t see me.”
By Davalynn Spencer @davalynnspencer Sometimes we feel forgotten. Unappreciated. Overlooked. Abandoned. Unloved. Alone. But we’re not. “Are not five sparrows sold for two copper coins? And not one of them is forgotten before God. But the very hairs of your head are all numbered. Do not fear, therefore;
By Davalynn Spencer @davalynnspencer I prefer to shop for groceries early in the morning. That doesn’t mean I always make it. I just prefer it. There are fewer people and more available shopping carts. Shelves are recently stocked, and the nerves of checkers and staff are not yet
By Davalynn Spencer @davalynnspencer My husband and I watch a lot of football and I enjoy it. I think it’s because I am goal-oriented (no pun intended). I like to see an objective and make plans to reach it, giving attention to process and detail along the way.
By Davalynn Spencer @davalynnspencer An empty calendar and the first page of a blank journal mark my juncture of Known and Unknown. Behind me lie personal mountains of success and failure, as well as the mistakes, warnings, and recommendations of others along the way. But ahead of me?
By Davalynn Spencer @davalynnspencer When we think of the first Christmas (which was not called that at the time), we usually think of Mary and the infant Jesus huddled somewhere on the outskirts of an over-crowded Bethlehem during the first century. No light other than oil or candle.
By Davalynn Spencer @davalynnspencer Remember when Christmas was simple? You were probably a child. Gifts Pine trees Lights Music As adults we complicate things. Parties Pre-lit trees Shopping without end Credit Can we simplify the season—enjoy it without getting caught up in the hoopla? Celebrate the Child? This
By Davalynn Spencer @davalynnspencer Mary was once a common name for Jewish girls. It’s been a common name for other girls as well, primarily because of the first Mary mentioned in the Bible who was, in my opinion, quite uncommon. Uncommon because of the way she handled interruptions.
By Davalynn Spencer @davalynnspencer One man’s idea of born-in-a-barn is the forerunner of some of our contemporary Christmas décor. Tradition says this man was so disturbed by the secular materialism around Christmas, that he staged a living nativity scene or crèche to draw attention to the birth of
By Davalynn Spencer @davalynnspencer Christmas memories rise around me each year like yeast rolls in a warm kitchen. Some are tender and sweet, and some carry a dash of heartache. I can choose which of them to carry with me and which to let go. No sense cluttering