Good morning. I know you are probably still sleeping, but I’ve been up at five o-clock all week reading and collecting thoughts and today is no different so I decided to write you a letter. It’s stormy outside and the drop in barometric pressure is playing head games with my sinuses. Hopefully four Advil out of the cabinet will help. The path for the red-eye flights out of California into Nashville is going right over the house this morning making it difficult to distinguish between the thunder and the jet engines. I came downstairs hoping to find Fritz, our Schnauzer, sitting on the screen porch safe and dry. He still isn’t home. He took off after some geese yesterday afternoon that we’re milling around beside the lake behind our house. He’s done this many times before but this time he just kept running. We expected him to just show up at our door as usual but by nightfall he still wasn’t home and we started to get worried and began searching the neighborhood. Hopefully he’s not chasing that big goose in the sky, if you know what I mean.

This week was a bit slower and that was nice. In the aftermath of all of the weighty events that have taken place in our family during the past fourteen days it was a welcomed and needed change. Our Bus is gone, my publishing deal (of 11 years) is gone, our computer and two thousand pictures and songs are gone, (and now our dog is gone) but we are safe and provided for. My prayer guide (A Guide to Prayer for All Gods People) has me reading Hebrews 12:1-2 every day this week. It’s the famous passage about casting off the things that hinder us and the sin that entangles us so we can run our race to the fullest. I’d read this verse before but never noticed the distinction Paul makes between the “things” and the “sin”. In the original Greek things is translated from “Ogkos” meaning bulk or encumbrance. These things aren’t sinful they’re just not necessary and act as backpack filled with marbles that we insist on carrying up a mountain. In our prayers for simplicity Yahweh might just be helping us cast off what we didn’t know we didn’t need. We’ll see.

Have a restful weekend –
Jeromy
www.ffh.net