Sometimes you get on a roll — I mean I get on a roll and I forget things I already know. Last night I got going on the idea that Jesus didn’t sing and it all fell together so nicely until I got up this morning to find notes from a couple of friends reminding…

I can remember buying the record. Vinyl. 1979 — my first year in seminary and her first record, self-titled: Rickie Lee Jones. The radio hit was “Chuck E.’s in Love,” but the record was full of great things beyond what was fed to the general public. I loved the abandon with which she sang and…

Last week at my church’s series on Poverty in Durham, one of the speakers said the biggest difference between those who hit on hard times and end up homeless and those who hit upon hard times and do not is the latter have a network — they have people to turn to who will help…

Tonight I am grateful that grace abounds. I have been in Nashville since Friday for several book-related events, most all of which have centered around gathering with friends and most all of them have gone late into the evening before the conversations stopped — or at least before I quit talking. I have not, therefore,…

I love a good conversation among friends. We make each other better when we challenge, when we question, and when we dream — together. My post from last night brought three notes my way that kept me thinking and praying about what needs to happen here in our town, across the country, and around the…

Tonight was the third in our series of gatherings at church to look at what we can do about poverty in Durham. This week’s session was called “Beyond Charity: Addressing Causes and Empowering People.” We heard from three different groups: Circles of Support, which looks to create support teams of four to ten people who…

I spent two and a half hours today with the allergist. (Hang in there — I don’t intend to talk about this for the rest of Lent, I promise.) Since I had done without my medications for a week, I was able for them to do some testing on me, which meant I laid down…

After writing about allergies, I went to bed with metaphors on my mind and woke up thinking about music as both metaphor and soundtrack for life, or at least those thoughts were running in the background. Before I left for church, I listened again to Scott Simon’s interview with Emmylou Harris and Rodney Crowell introducing…

I go to a famous physician I sleep in the local hotel From what I can see of the people like me We get better but we never get well — Paul Simon, “Allergies” My week has been marked by my allergies, and in particular preparing to go to see a new allergist on Monday….