First Presbyterian Church of Valparaiso

One of the great joys of my life has been leading the Wednesday morning Faithful Friends Bible study. We gather together to pray, sing, tell stories, laugh…it is a wonderful hour of fellowship and community. Most importantly, we lean in on the Scripture passages that are our focus of the day. There are two times each year when Trish and I get together to find meaningful shorter studies that we can complete in a timely way. It’s a bit more complicated than perusing the Advent,

“Sir, I’m lost can you help me with directions?” It was late in the afternoon on Halloween and the chill in the air was noticeable as the sunlight faded quickly. But the knock at our door wasn’t from a trick or treater getting an early start, it was from a soft-spoken teenage boy shifting his backpack to rest it on our front sidewalk. “Sure,” I said, “can you show or tell me what the address is?” When he did, I pulled out my phone and opened the map app, only to discover that

I truly enjoy writing a blog once every eight weeks or so. It causes me to reflect and consider what might be of interest and therefore read by folks…and how I might make it interesting.      The season of Advent is always, OK…let’s agree on is usually, a time filled with a lot of hustle & bustle as we prepare for family time either at our place or theirs, and a time of trying to determine what the appropriate gift, or gifts, will be for each person we are buying for. Decisio

Perfectly Flawed…That’s me, Perfectly Flawed and I am perfectly fine with that! What is she talking about this time?! Well, I am glad you asked. Wednesday mornings at 10:00 a.m. are my very favorite part of my Wednesdays because it is the time I get to spend with the spunkiest group of ladies from the Faithful Friends Bible Study. I do believe we laugh and cut up more that we should own up to; and yet we always have the most meaningful conversations. I would not trade my Wed

I’ve become somewhat obsessed with electric candles.   Okay, more than somewhat. I have them all over the house. Pillars with what look like real flames, flickering against the dark wall. Tiny pinpoints of fairy lights—glowing in jars, on shelves, and soon, on little Christmas trees.   I suppose this has something to do with the fact that it now gets dark at 4:30 in the afternoon! And, because one of my eyes is permanently dilated, very bright light is often blinding. The so

Trish Lawson and I always have fun choosing an Advent study for the Faithful Friends Bible study. We pour through the PCUSA catalogue, check on-line, and discuss a variety of topics. This has been a most enjoyable part of serving as Moderator of Faith Formation for the past 6 years. Trish has a wealth of knowledge, great ideas and vision, and her faith is steadfast.    During Advent 2025, we will be using the book, Calling All Angels; an Advent Study of Fearlessness and Stren

What’s almost over, you may ask? Well, quite a few things actually. Summer for sure, but Fall was well underway until rudely interrupted by the first somewhat big snowfall on Sunday & Monday, so maybe Fall is over too? If true, then that means Winter is underway…ugh! It isn’t even Thanksgiving yet, but we know that 2025 is almost over.   Readers of my blog are now used to my references to the weather and the seasons, situations and occurrences over which we have little to zer