Michael Newman

Who is this God who allows suffering, loss, and pain? Why did He let you be tossed into the miry pit of misery anyway? If that is how God works, why would you want to have anything to do with Him? For one important reason: in this hurting and broken world, there is no one else who can lift you out and bring you through.

“The days go slowly, but the years go quickly.”

Dr. Seuss's "How the Grinch Stole Christmas!" followed the tradition of casting holiday-dreaders as Scrooge-like, sour-souled sad sacks who became downers and “buzz-kills” for every Cindy Lou and Tiny Tim with eager and innocent holiday aspirations.

But a quiet group of holiday-dreaders dwells quietly behind the scenes.  You may be one of them.  You try not to be noticed, but you wince as Thanksgiving and Christmas draw near. Your heart is not two sizes too small; your heart is broken.

My daughter huddled under an interior set of stairs with her husband and his parents as Hurricane Harvey unleashed its fury outside. She and her husband left their home in Victoria, Texas, as the city issued a mandatory evacuation order. Now the ravages of the hurricane stretched aggressively toward their safe haven miles from the storm’s center. At 2:30 a.m. she sent a text: “Can’t sleep. Mom, you wouldn’t like this!”