Halloween Haikus

Fall is a party.

Having thrown their confetti,

Trees stand awkwardly

::

Tall macchiato,

Laptop, Bible, Snickers Bar.

Too windy outside.

::

Brother sent lyrics

Determined, Specific and Gentle

Dr. Levi Pulver* welcomed me into his office today for my first chiropractic adjustment. As a new patient, he scheduled an extra long visit in order to do some preliminary tests. He had me stand against a grid on a wall to assess my posture, marking the alignment of my ears, shoulders and hips. He tested my range of motion.

Then it got really interesting**. He tested the strength of different muscles by applying resistance. He had me hold my hands on certain places on my chest and then tested my strength again. In some positions, my strength was clearly reduced. Apparently, a drop in strength signifies an interference with a specific nerve. After a short series of a few of these tests, Dr. Levi said that it looked like I had some interference with a specific vertebra on the left side of my neck and a suture on the right side of

Under the Same Roof

Out of our kitchen window I spotted our neighbor, Sandy, walking up our back porch. "She's here!" I called to Rachel since my hands were full, straining the pasta and grilling the chicken.

We first met Sandy the day we came to check out this duplex. I noticed a very nicely kept garden and a lady in her seventies who greeted us with a smile and a wave. Since moving in, we have had numerous pleasant conversations with Sandy as we have come and gone, and during one or two of them we had extended an invitation for dinner.

She placed a gift on the table and we poured some wine from Traverse City*. I served pasta with chicken and a simple Alfredo sauce while we got to know one another better. 

Sandy moved into this duplex eighteen years ago with her second husband, "best of friends". They

Running Down My Knuckles

We stand up when the music begins to play and begin to walk toward the front of the room. Chris is in front of me and Rachel is behind me; we come step by step. Steve had just spent the last thirty minutes describing all of ways we pride ourselves in our accomplishments, good deeds, heritage, and abilities. We come to God with these things, proud of our worthiness because we cannot believe the all-encompassing grace of Jesus. What do I put in this equation?

Jesus + ________ = Everything

Nothing. Jesus is everything. God's love cannot be earned or deserved. It's unreasonable and irrational. It is extravagant and incomprehensible. Anything I have done or become has all been overcome by God's love.

I see a woman holding out a plate full of pieces of bread and a man holding a clay cup full of red juice.

In the bread and the wine, Christ invites me to receive his grace, to digest it. The invitation is for

So. Much.

There are sometimes moments in which the successes of those around us amplify the voice of poverty in our ears. The voice that says, "You do not have enough. These other people are set for success and fortune and you will never have what they have." There is a race all around me, stirring up my heart and pulling me in with it to chase a life free of struggle. This race is real, but it is a race I am not obligated to run. When I step back, I think, "I never set out for success and fortune. Those are not the things I am pursuing." True, in some ways I don't have all that I could want. I've experienced struggle and need. But when I remember that I am actually heading in the opposite direction toward a different prize, I am filled with so much thanksgiving*:

I am thankful Rachel has a broken heart for people in need and that she acts on it every day by working towards finding adopting parents for orphaned children.

I am thankful for the way my twin brother loves God, his wife and his son. I am thankful for the way

Eye To Eye

From those who will take hold of love,
she flees until beheld again by
love's affection.
A warm beside allows even
love's nearness; although 'tis sweet enough,
'tis sad; enough for most
But those who pride themselves an
object not and bravery do have,
permit love's gaze from eye to eye
will both receive and give truest
belovedness by being known.

Thunder and Rain

As I am writing I hear thunder to the south and west of our house in Grand Haven. It's coming up over the lake and passing overhead, drawing with it the rain. Apparently a cold front has been crossing the continent in this direction; it was in Colorado yesterday and today it is colliding with the warm weather we've been having, producing thunder and rain. I love feeling the crack and rumble and then listening as rain comes over everything.

Also coming from Colorado today was Hugh Halter, who led a conversation among church leaders on the topic of becoming missionaries in our context. It really comes down to allowing the gospel to

Into A Real Home

"O you can keep your shoes on. I do anyways." Vicki welcomed us into her home through her garage door. My shoes were half-off already. The kitchen table had brownies and chips on it, as well as some empty glasses ready to be filled with water, lemonade, beer, or diet soda. I would not say their house was perfectly clean. Instead I felt as if I was walking into my own home*. We gradually found seats in the living room, one at a time, as the kids went downstairs to play.

I love our time as a small group, getting together to see one another, to be with one another, to ask one another questions and to listen. At some point we open scripture and ask what we have been noticing in our reading. This fall we've been reading through the New Testament together and this last week we have read a few of Paul's letters to early churches. I noticed that Paul keeps reminding them that Christ is all, that we are adopted by grace into God's family (and not by anything else we have

Shoes Before Glory

Today I went on a run around a new part of my neighborhood. I love running and am often motivated by my desire to get outside and be inspired, to have an adventure*. But this doesn't happen automatically. It's rarely convenient to go running. The essence of exercise is pain, exerting oneself to make one stronger. It would be much easier if I just set a regular time or if I had someone to run with because then the "yes" would be made for me. I have an inner dilemma almost every time. What if I were to wait a little longer until things warm up? I'm too hungry to run, I'll eat first. I just ate, I'll wait a little longer. I just showered, so I don't want to have to shower again.

BRENDAN, just GO!

So this morning I just put on my shoes, got out the door and I loved it. The leaves on the sidewalk were damp with the morning fog.

I have never been great at doing my homework. I distinctly remember the first homework assignment I decided to not complete on purpose. It was The Odyssey in my freshman English class. From then on in all of my education, even through my master's degree, I rarely did my homework assignments. I am not proud of this. I do not recommend this. I think I thought I was beating the system, that I could

A Walk in the Woods

Open Doors, Broken Doors

After church this morning, Rachel and I walked through our backyard to the Thompson's house and gave his family a plate of cookies. The Thompsons have five children and they were all running around and playing. It was our first time stopping by and they invited us in warmly. I love that without a word of notice they were prepared to welcome guests in, even if their house was not perfect (My other mom, Mrs. Lippman, always says, "welcome to our imperfect home" and I think that is a very Godly greeting). To me, welcoming a visitor into an imperfect but loving home is a powerful way a family can show God's heart. We played with the kids, chatted with the family and made our way out, happy to have made connections with our new friends.

Walking down their driveway I spotted Thompson's car door ajar with the inside panel removed. I asked him about it. "Our daughter likes to swing from the handle and it finally broke! I have been

Welcome Invitation

Today we had over Liz, a childhood friend of Rachel's. Liz was a bridesmaid in our wedding and Rachel was a bridesmaid in her's. So it was a joy to have somebody so special over to our house on a leafy fall afternoon. As it neared dinner time, we urged Liz to stay and eat with us. Opening our home is one of the ways Rachel and I have chosen to bless others and celebrate God's love. Whether we are tight on our budget, or experiencing a surplus, inviting others to eat with us reminds us that God invites all of us to dine with him, to attend his awesome banquet. I was excited to welcome Liz to our table.

I decided to cook chicken coconut curry*, one of my favorite meals to make. I stretched our ingredients so we could all have a small portion. It feels so right to sacrifice my plate so others can join the table, I thought.

As I was cooking, Rachel and Liz decided to go on a walk around the neighborhood to say "hi" to her brother and sister a few blocks away. Just as I'm finishing up the meal I get a call from Rachel.

"Brendan, Charlie and Annie are coming over too! They said they didn't have any dinner plans so I

Glad You Were Born

Calvin and I just chilling at the beach in NorCal.

Today I celebrate my best friend on his birthday. Calvin was born December 19, 1988 in northern California into a great family. When I was 2, my family moved into the area and our moms became good friends. I remember play dates with Calvin as toddlers. My brother Connor and I would go over to visit Calvin and Jeff and play for hours: treehouse, board games, video games, capture the flag, hide and go seek, movie making, and Risk™ (the former included a large splinter for me that Calvin's mom retrieved. The latter included fist fights between Calvin and Jeff).

Calvin was not only a childhood friend. When my family moved to southern California, Calvin remained a faithful friend to me. We've

It's Not What You Say But Who You Are

Last night I gathered with other believers as we centered ourselves on scripture. It's a beautiful thing how the Spirit speaks to each of us differently from the same passages and then also how the community responds in love and listening.

One of the members shared something about which she had a question and opened it up to the rest of us. With little hesitation I was the first to respond. But even as I was sharing I had the thought,

"Why do I feel like I have to say something?"

After I finished my thought, I let other people talk for a little bit as I did some praying with God. Why do I feel compelled to contribute? I notice that I often offer to pray first, share something, or give a

Dishes and the 405

There's nothing that says good morning quite like a pile of dirty dishes filling up the sink and spilling out on all countertops and even on the stove. I was too hungry to do dishes, so I ate breakfast and added a bowl and a spoon to the collection only to walk back upstairs to do who-knows-what. Why did I put it off? Why didn't I just do them after breakfast? I think I wanted to believe that I had more important things to do, even though I didn't. Not just more important things to do, but I wanted to be more important than that. Turns out, I'm not.

Come lunch time and the dishes still weren't done. After adding a plate and a fork to the pile, I began my work. I actually do enjoy washing dishes*, and I will often ask if I can do them, even after cooking. For the most part, this task gets a bad rap, and it is often used as a punishment for children
(or maybe it is thought of as a punishment by grown-up children whose mothers or grandmothers made them wash the dishes for misbehaving at the table. And I bet those grandmother's mothers made it a

Sabbath and Fall

In San Diego, you have a warm summer (April through October) and a colder summer (November through March). You do not have faith in seasons. If plants start dying, "Water it! Fertilize it! There must be a disease!" But in Michigan, when plants start to die, people go on runs through beautiful woods (like mine today at Hofma park. Above, the branches dangled gold medallions and bright red
flames. Their branches stretched out across the trail like a victory tunnel through which I would run and cheer, lifting my hands to stroke the low-hanging leaves. And below, the forest floor was covered in a blanket of every color, leaves like confetti after a celebration. I didn't want that run to end). How

A Call from My Friend, Reid

Today I woke to my vibrating phone from an unknown number. I answered it, "hello?"

"Where are you, Brendan?" asked a teenage male voice, sad and curious. I recognized the voice and a big smile came to my face.

"Oh, hi Reid! Good morning! Where am I? I am in Michigan."

"When are you coming back?" he asked with even deeper sadness in his voice.

"Christmas. I'm coming back around Christmas."

"Christmas? I'll be here on Christmas! Yes I will."

Puddles Everywhere

God's mercy comes
In steady pitter patter
Dripping from bare branches
Gathering on umbrellas
Rolling down in streamlets
And long black coats.
May I go outside to splash in all the puddles?

Why Is It Called Fall When Everything Goes Sideways?

Wind used to be my least favorite type of weather.

Rachel, Jen, Ben and I went down to the lake today to take pictures of the pier for a painting Rachel and I want to do for our living room. We drove over the wet fingers of sand reaching into the parking lot, turned off our cars and stepped out to a racing, wet, sandy wind, the kind that makes it hard to open the car door and easy to shut it. We ran out past the rickety fences to the water and took some pictures, keeping the camera to the north side of our bodies to keep it dry. The wind was shaping large, messy waves that were way out of line (coming from Encinitas, I'm used to waves cooperating to create long shoulders upon which a surfer could easily ride, not this carnage I've been seeing on

Raining Through My Car

It's raining! I woke up to the sound last night as I was falling asleep. I love the sound of the rain as it lands on my roof, the asphalt, the trees and the grass, wetting everything without preference. I thought of my car parked outside and the water running down the rear windshield and through a small leak in the trunk. I wedged a jar in the exact spot the water drips down. Every so often it fills up and I have to empty it out (kinda gross?) and then I put it right back in its place. But it rained all night and is still