church

you probably already know that my in-laws from sweden are in town to celebrate christmas with lina + me, which i think is super cool. and you may or may not know that my…

well, folks. i think it’s time to retire the ole sensory overload title. i’m not retiring the category, though. so, you can always click on the tab at the top of the page that…

whoa. i am overwhelmed by the response i have had after telling my story about my experience with the UMC and LGBT issues. you people are truly amazing. thank you! more than anything, though, i thank…

friends, it’s happening again. love is on trial. you know, when people get together and begin to decide who is right and who is wrong. who gets to love whom. who gets to get…

hi friends! long time, no post… huh? geez, i have missed y’all. i’ve missed writing and posting, but i have been super busy the past 4ish days. and i do believe that the busy-ness…

good sunday morning, friends! in sweden, the sun is shining for the second day in a row. but, spring is still slowly trying to make itself known. i must admit, i am longing for…

so, i had a little to say this morning about peace and how we try to create a world of peace in the midst of the violence that we find everywhere. and, for me,…

i’m gonna take a little break in the berlin posts now that i’m halfway through them. i have something even more important than travel to write about today. you may or may not know…

hello dear readers! i have diligently posted something here every day lately, not that i have a goal or challenge to do that, but i just like to check in, provide a tidbit of…

celebration is my theme for today. woo hoo!! got my sermon all done last night. based it on jesus turning water into wine at a wedding. wrote about learning to celebrate in every moment,…

there are a lot of really great & interesting people where i work. and they come in all shapes, sizes, & ages. yesterday, i had the joy of sitting with 3 completely different people…

  it’s the second sunday of advent. the sunday of love. the first week of advent has flown by & i have been pretty faithful to finding some quiet time by myself every day.…

friday. saturday. sunday. first weekend in december… check. cooking. baking. snow. the theater. family visitors. friends. open house. thanksgiving. more snow. christmas market. church. work. advent. christmas market. thanksgiving again. candles. sunday night collapse on…

i know. it’s been a almost a week since i’ve gotten back from my road trip to southern sweden for a big, family weekend, and i haven’t posted any pictures yet. my excuse? i…

i woke up this morning and it was cold. i mean well below freezing cold. like really hard to get out from under your covers cold. brrr… but, even though a chill was in…

one down and two to go. days of work, that is. tonight i met with the youth. it went well, though many of them were out of town/busy. still the ones that were there…

hope y’all have had a great weekend too! what did you do? ready for monday? i am! i can’t wait! peace out.…

you got it. i’ve got another one of my pics published in a newspaper. no big deal. this is just how we photographers live… i’m kidding. of course this is a big deal! and…

i cannot even begin to express in words the gratitude and honor that i feel because i was able to be a part of such an amazing wedding day of 2 very special people.…

hey hey! it’s 9pm and completely dark outside. yes, fall is on its way. no more swedish summer sun at 11:30 at night. tonight we’re sitting on the bed, each staring at our computer…

“I will not die an unlived life. I will not live in fear of falling or catching fire. I choose to inhabit my days, to allow my living to open me, to make me…

if you’ve visited my blog before then you know that i love coffee, tea, candles, quiet times, meditation/reflection, writing and opportunities to just be. i guess you could say that i am a pretty…

tuesday was warm, blindingly sunny, and i worked hard to soak up every minute. ironically the photo a day challenge was “the best part of your day”. well, i hard a hard time deciding…

one of my blog friends, german-american abroad, asked me to write a little bit about my decision to move to sweden and my first reactions to living here.  she knows that i am working…

this was my 5th midsummer celebration in sweden. i’m almost a pro. hehe. this year we celebrated at the camp where i took my youth last weekend – the church owns the camp &…

well, here’s my take on the photo challenge for today: your view. i decided to snap a few little shots throughout the day to show my view at different times & different places. take…

today it was all about the jeans and the tee… my go-to outfit. my fav outfit. my i-can-wear-this-everyday outfit. it’s just me. casual. carefree. relaxed. simple. wearing my fav style today got me thinking… about…

today is the day. today the united methodist church will vote once again on their stance/beliefs on homosexuality and the church. it’s something that has been voted on every 4 years for the past…

today is a holiday in sweden. yep. a random tuesday. well, not so random. it’s the first day of may. MAY DAY! and over here, that means a day off to celebrate the beginning…

(blackbyrd performing at a charity concert) i’ve heard some really great music today. stuff that fills my soul. calms me. makes me close my eyes & just be. i let the music- the instruments…

i did it. i made it. i stood up, opened my mouth, and let the swedish flow. ok, perhaps it didn’t flow perfectly. perhaps i stumbled over some pronunciations and mixed up some grammar.…

we have this routine in the mornings in our little home. not one that we decided on, but that has just happened over time. the cat loves to play early in the mornings… which…

there was no snow at christmas, but look what we got for easter weekend. hmm… it’s pretty. but, come on, it’s april. and i’ve decided that i’m not that excited about it. the fact…

the blogging world is amazing. i know there are some people who think that the whole internet/social media thing is out of control, and it definitely can become something that takes over your life,…

if you know me, or have visited my blog before, then you know that i love to travel. i crave it. i yearn for it. and i am always longing for my next trip to some place…

quote of the day: history, despite its wrenching pain, cannot be unlived, but if faced with courage, need not be lived again. ~ Maya Angelou today i took this picture of the church where…

it was a sunday morning in a small mill town in the mountains of north carolina. i was standing in front of around 120 people, leading a worship service… part of my job as…

it’s late & i’m tired, but not too tired to share some pics. hehe. so, here we go… day 15: car  we have no car & i couldn’t find the car that i want,…

i’m hoping to find something at the end of the rainbow today, since it’s st. patrick’s day. i’m hoping that the luck of the irish will shower down on me and at the end…

many of you know that i’ve (we’ve) got one of my (our) friends from the states with us this week! not only is it super great to have some time to talk & catch…

hanging out with people at work. I just had to do it. This morning I emailed my friend in North Carolina because today is a day we always loved to share. I remember standing…

it’s sunday afternoon and i just woke from a nap. feeling so content. have i ever mentioned how much i looove naps? i am a napping kinda girl, though, sadly, they are few &…

oh my gosh. where do i begin? life is crazy right now. really good, but crazy. working 1 job 50% and having an internship 50% is about to rip me in two. don’t get…

hey! i feel like i’ve been all over the place during the past 24-48 hours. i worked at the church with the youth, cleaned the apartment, was part of an historic meeting where 2…

 me hanging out at work friday night, waiting for the youth i work with to arrive. i drank waaaayyy too much coffee last night at work. can you say hyper & unable to sleep?…

there is this little town on the east side of the great smoky mountains/pisgah national forest. it’s a mill town. a paper mill, that is. i never knew much about it, or actually cared…

it’s sunday! all the craziness with work is over! the intensity went right up to the last minute, but now it’s over. i’m in the midst of my last minute preparations before i jump…

perhaps the tiny bit of snow that fell last night & seems to be sticking around throughout the day has inspired me. perhaps i’m just in a good mood. perhaps i’m a little bit…