Dig Deeper into Sunday’s Gospel: Read John 10:1–10
Early one morning last week, we saw a coyote in our backyard, hanging out by our pool. Since he was an uninvited guest, when spotted in our suburban oasis he scurried into the shrubbery and up the hill. [...]
Dig Deeper into Sunday’s Gospel: Read John 20:19–31
The gospel for Divine Mercy Sunday opens in a place we don’t often like to admit we know well: the upper room.
Let’s take a moment to visualize ourselves there.
The doors of this room are locked, and the disciples are gathered together. [...]
Dig Deeper into Sunday’s Gospel: Read John 11:1–45
As I write this, daylight saving time (DST) has just started, and I’m feeling its unwelcome effects. While it’s wonderful to have more sunshine here in Southern California, my body still takes a few weeks to adjust to even a simple one-hour “spring forward.” I’m left feeling groggy in the mornings, [...]
Dig Deeper into Sunday’s Gospel: Read John 4:5–42
Jesus intentionally traveled into Samaria at that specific hour because He knew she would be there.
And then, He spoke to her. This fact alone is striking. A Jewish man initiating a conversation with a Samaritan woman would have been socially unthinkable. [...]
Dig Deeper into Sunday’s Gospel: Read Matthew 4:1–11
The number of times I have woken up on Ash Wednesday, overly confident that THIS would be the Lent I’d hold to my chosen fast, only to stumble and fail before reaching that first Sunday, is too many to count. [...]
Dig Deeper into Sunday’s Gospel: Read Matthew 5:17–37
Research suggests that women in particular enjoy making lists and find them useful for managing tasks and responsibilities, whether it's planning a trip, a work project, a party, or a grocery run. Are you a planner? Do you love making lists? [...]
Dig Deeper into Sunday’s Gospel: Read Matthew 4:12–23
We live in a world governed by filters. Before we post a photo or share a life update, we crop out the mess, adjust the lighting, and present an image that suggests we have it all together.
Wouldn’t we all love to do the same with our real lives? [...]
Dig Deeper into this Sunday’s Gospel: Read Matthew 2:1–12
“Dad, can you come upstairs?”
That was my first clue something was amiss—something in my heart immediately sensed it. I heard my husband’s footsteps as he walked the upstairs hallway into my oldest son’s bedroom.
Fifteen minutes later, [...]
Dig Deeper into Sunday’s Gospel: Read Matthew 11:2–11
Gaudete Sunday invites one and all to rejoice. A rose-colored candle is lit, signaling that the long night of waiting is nearly over.
Named for the entrance antiphon, “Rejoice (gaudete) in the Lord always, again I say, rejoice.” Gaudete Sunday and the rose candle point us to the hope found in our waiting. [...]
Like so many, I've known the grip of anxiety. That knot and tightness in my chest, the pit in my stomach, the constant swirl of what-ifs and worst-case scenarios. I've replayed conversations over and over, analyzing things I said or did or failed to say. I've wrestled with the perfectionism, [...]
