Note: If a film in which two socially awkward men make up paddleball games, do jigsaw puzzles, watch kung-fu movies, and face a terminal diagnosis, appeals to you, then bookmark this post, go watch the movie, Paddleton, on Netflix, and…
A number of months ago, I wrote a reflection on being written into the story, inspired by Frodo Baggins and Samwise Gamgee's dialogue in J.R.R. Tolkien's The Two Towers. They had paused mid-mission to wonder "what sort of tale" they…
"Is this just going to keep happening?" my seven year old daughter asked. Her voice caught in her throat. Her eyes were tired from crying. She had had a hard day at school. "Is this just going to keep happening…
I've seen this meme pop up on Facebook a few times in the last bit and it's gotten some good traction: "It's not about how tired you are. It's about how tired you're making everyone else." - My husband explaining…
Although my voice sometimes catches in my throat during the funerals I officiate, I rarely shed tears. The tissue box at the pulpit is more there for the bereaved family members who come up to speak about their loved one.…
A week and a half ago, our family adopted a puppy from the Kingston Humane Society. Nevada is a three month old Siberian Husky mix and we love her. And just as we anticipated, she's turned our lives inside out and…
In the third month after the Israelites left Egypt, they arrived at the Desert of Sinai and camped in front of the mountain. Before God gave them the Ten Words, Moses did a lot of running up and down the…
My father, the Rev. Dr. Jim Petersen, is a retired Christian Reformed Church minister who still has fire in his belly. He is a preacher and an evangelist, yes. But more importantly, he is a lover of the Word and…
Toward the end of "The Two Towers", by J.R.R. Tolkien, Frodo and Sam, on their way to destroy the Ring, take a rest "in a dark crevice between two great piers of rock" on the stairs of Cirith Ungol. As…
I accompany our church choir, and for this year's Christmas morning service we sang a choral version of "God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen": God Rest Ye, arranged by David Chase. In worship planning, I had arranged for "God Rest Ye"…
