lynn-guistics

I recognized the feeling in an instant, and it simply took my breath away… JOY! The suffering that accompanied a seemingly endless series of life challenges had gradually eroded my joy, so much so that I only discerned glimmers of it, now and again. But this was more than a glimmer of joy, my friends. This was a sustained state of joy, and I suddenly realized I’d been basking in it for days now. Something inside me was different. I felt lighter. Unfettered. My potential seemed limitless! My smile was unforced, my contentment was palpable, and I knew peace. As I pondered this newfound state of joy, it occurred to me that I’d been journeying through the last few years of life with little of it. Encumbered by the weight of physical and emotional trials that had become increasingly difficult to bear, I’d somehow allowed my joy to be overtaken by a deep sadness. Still, I was sure my joy could be rediscovered, if only I would adhere to the teachings found within the pages of my Bible. Among

Today marks 20 years since September 11th, 2001, or "9/11," that unforgettable day in our nation's history when four ruthless, coordinated terrorist attacks took place on U.S. soil. The days that followed 9/11 found me camped in front of the television set, watching in disbelief and horror as the aftermath of those attacks unfolded. There, I observed and began to grasp everything our nation had lost on that fateful day: thousands of precious lives... our sense of security... our peace of mind... our ability to trust... our innocence. Twenty years later, memories of that time remain seared into my mind - vivid, heart-wrenching picture memories that I can access as easily as I'm able to retrieve a scrapbook from a bookshelf. One of the most indelible of these is an image of three New York City firefighters standing at Ground Zero of the World Trade Center bombings, raising our country's flag above the debris and inspiring within my heart the hope that the people of

When my brother and I were preteens, our family attended an Easter service at Tallowood Baptist Church in Houston, Texas. The pastor's sermon on that special Sunday in the life of the church was entitled, "Remember No More," and spoke of the promise God makes to His children - that He will "forgive their wickedness and will remember their sins no more." During his message, the pastor shared with the congregation a number, then challenged us to do our best to forget the number he'd shared, just as God forgets our sins. In the weeks and months following that sermon, someone in our family would ask, "What was the number we were supposed to forget?" and, in unison, we'd immediately shout out the same number. Years later, the topic of this sermon would inevitably be raised and still, we all remembered that number. The implications were clear and two-fold: 1) forgetting can be a difficult undertaking, and 2) our family is not adept at following ins

My mom was a lover of sitcoms. Throughout the years, we spent many happy times together in front of the television, entertained by shows designed to help viewers find humor in the everyday stuff of life. One of Mom's favorite programs was Golden Girls, which centered around the lives of Rose, Blanche, Dorothy, and Sophia - four widowed "seniors" living together in Miami. These golden girls were aging gracefully, and discovering along the way that joy and laughter can be experienced even in the midst of life's difficult moments. Each week, the show's creators and authors wove tales of these four characters wrestling with some sort of life predicament, their distinctive personalities on display as they grappled: Rose, innocent and optimistic; Blanche, bodacious and flirtatious; Dorothy, skeptical and sarcastic; Sophia, wise and witty. By show's end, these golden girls had endured and emerged from their hardship no worse for the wear; on the contrary, the challen