Renee Hawkley In Joy!

                                                                    When Logan Sings                                                                       by Renee Hawkley  I conduct the congregational singing in church. Each week, I survey the Sunday-best version of my friends and neighbors from my seat behind the pulpit. I can count on Logan being there with his grandparents, parents and four older siblings. They sit in the center section and take up the better part of a pew. Most often, Logan stays buckled in his wheelchair beside their row. Before Logan was born, there was a mix-up with his chromosomes, so he can’t walk, talk, or do th...

                                                                                                                                                        The Man of My Dreams by Renee Hawkley “How do you like being married to a lawyer?” A young friend asked the question decades ago. I admit. When I fell in love with my blue-eyed prince, a profession wasn’t on my list of priorities. As it turned out, his professions were many and varied. Let’s see. They were: Restroom janitor, daily @ 4-7 a.m. — an excuse for university students to go to bed early Buffer of floors, daily @ 4-7 a.m. — his appetite and bicep...

"Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. It is our light, not our darkness that most frightens us. We ask ourselves, Who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented, fabulous? Actually, who are you  not  to be? You are a child of God. Your playing small does not serve the world. There is nothing enlightened about shrinking so that other people won't feel insecure around you. We are all meant to shine, as children do. We were born to make manifest the glory of God that is within us. It's not just in some of us; it's in everyone. And as we let our own light shine, we unconsciously give other people permission to do the same. As we are liberated from our own fear, our presence automatically liberates others."  by Marianne Williamson

I Thessalonians 5:17 "Pray without Ceasing?" What does this scripture even mean? Well . . . maybe it means to keep our eyes, ears, hands, heart and brain open to the Holy Spirit at all times. Together, these faithful partners can notice questions and provide answers about what to think, say and do. In this way, the miracles of "Pray without ceasing" come to us more easily -- even when our mouths are shut and we are not kneeling. -- by Renee Hawkley --

 For Roberta by Renee Hawkley The November air had a bite to it as I walked to work this morning. The sky was full blue, and nature was showing off in a thunder of silence. I picked up a leaf among many strewn along the sidewalk and, on closer examination, was stunned to discover its exquisite blend of design, color, shading and texture. My coworkers must see this! I chose a prominent counter and displayed it on a background of yellow construction paper. Word spread, and the "perfect leaf" was visited by admirers throughout the day. Our graphic artist even borrowed it for a brief photo shoot. On the afternoon walk back home, I noticed all the other leaves that had escaped my attention earlier. Most are on the ground now. I think of them as colonies and collections -- the leaves raked into a pile -- the leaves huddled together blocking a storm drain -- the leaves filling a leaf bag. Suppose there is such a thing as a "plain old" pile of leaves, but no such thing as a...

January 20, 2021 I want to record a few thoughts before today's inauguration of Joe Biden as President of the United States. What is about to occur is a stunning blow to ". . . liberty and justice for all." Already, the concept of gender has been neutered in Congress by the removal of gender-related terms such as "mother, father, aunt and uncle." Already, freedom of speech that disturbs the desired narratives of "big tech" is censored and eliminated on their platforms and at their whim. Already, eugenics controls abortion, disposing of hundreds of thousands of "unsuitable and unwanted" human beings per year with taxpayer money and without a microbe of remorse. Already, socialism sympathizers, including many politicians who claim to honor the Constitution, have run for cover, scampering back into the loving arms of their wealth-driven donors and spineless constituents who may sit for civility, but stand for compliance to socialist agendas. Alr...

Sometimes I've wondered which comes first for me, faith in God or my country?   America was founded under a banner of religious freedom.  "My people" were searching for religious freedom and found it in America.   Without America, the story of "my people" and their faith in God would be very different.  I will be ever grateful for "my people," their story and the country I love.

The Missing Puzzle Piece by Renee Hawkley My 2020 Christmas gift to myself was a 1,000-piece puzzle of a winter village scene. I was a bit discouraged last night when the puzzle was nearly finished, and a single border piece was still missing. I mean, it’s just not Right to have one missing piece in a beautiful Thomas Kinkade work of art! Fast forward to this afternoon as I glanced at the puzzle table after returning home from the YMCA. There was the missing piece in plain sight near the edge of the table! I didn’t need to guess who had found it. My dear friend, Janice, who cleans my cozy abode once-a-month, had noticed a bitty part of it “blending in” with one of the tiles near the fireplace! I joyfully told her about the 999-piece puzzle that was “alone” without the single straight-edge piece that just happened to depict a cross at the tip of a church steeple in the village scene! It’s interesting how one little “tender mercy” can remind two of Christ’s followers that Jesus can compl...

"O Little Town of Bethlehem"  has been my favorite Christmas carol for as long as I can remember. I figured out why as the unfortunate events of 2020 spilled out bucket by bucket from January through December. It's because  "O Little Town of Bethlehem" focuses, not on the magnificence, the joy and grandeur associated with the entry of Jesus Christ, but on the stillness required by Each and Every One-of-us-at-a-time who chooses to kneel in reverence at His cradle, His cross and His empty tomb to receive His "unspeakable gift." 2 Cor. 9:15 "O little town of Bethlehem, How still we see thee lie. Above thy deep and dreamless sleep The silent stars go by; Yet in thy dark streets shineth The everlasting Light. The hopes and fears of all the years Are met in thee tonight. For Christ is born of Mary, And, gathered all above While mortals sleep, the angels keep Their watch of wond’ring love. O morning stars, together Proclaim the holy birth, And praises...

 " Christmas 2020"  by Renee Hawkley Even the grinchiest Grinch  Wouldn’t ask for a Christmas pandemic. Yet, here we are, amidst billions  Forging our way through 2020, Each traveler owning a unique story  Of trudging toward an unknown finish line,  Or of dropping out along the way. For me, 2020 is the first Christmas Ever when  “Busy” hasn’t occupied front stage with Family events, parties, church dinners,  Travel, school performances, choir rehearsals,  Baking, shopping, and On and On, Not in that particular order. It’s all so Very strange and Worth a ponder. I never tried a 1,000-piece puzzle before. I actually read a book  Cover to cover in December. Well, That’s never happened before! Unless you count Luke, chapter 2. Seven local grandchildren  Came on Friday in batches of three and then four To decorate my tree as usual. I told them it was the best event of 2020 And hugged each one of them tight!...

Hi Helen,  Thank you for sharing your "word of the year" ritual. This "small and simple thing" requires zero attention to resolutions, plans, deadlines, manuals, schedules or endless "To Do" lists. My word for 2021 was easy to choose.  It's "Peace." As this word "plays out" in my thoughts, words and deeds, it's certain to bless me and others, too!   Renee

 I wanted God. To repair the world. And He sent one carpenter.

Americans still have freedom of speech. I trust the Supreme Court to determine whether our country will stand for the Constitution, the Declaration of Independence, the Pledge of Allegiance, and our national motto, "In God we trust". . . or face annihilation like self-destructive civilizations of the past that somehow, someway lost their integrity of purpose and existence. PS. I don't mean the Supreme Court in Washington, DC.

He shows America how one imperfect citizen can, with tireless boldness, effort, heart, love of God and country, change the direction of a run-a-way world.

Never Let it Happen. Joe Biden "won" the election by an ambush of illegitimate mail-in votes that may never be accurately verified or vilified. Everyone knows that. "Never let it happen again" must not stand this time. Never let it happen.

  “Angels Have Been Here” from the memoirs of Margaret Thomas Marchant (1907-1989) *transcribed and lightly edited by Renee Thomas Hawkley, a niece “It was January of 1917. The North wind whistled over the Red Rock Valley. The snow lay crusty and glazed over its entirety. The world seemed to lie in silent terror, waiting. Waiting. 1Only the wind expressed openly its feeling of deep anxiety. War, fear, tanks, guns! Ours was a little town whose young boys had volunteered, boarded the local train mid tears and goodbyes, and found themselves homesick, frightened and alone in France. Tonight, the wind howled the grief of a frightened world. Victory for America tottered. But was there not yet the great ocean between us and our enemies? The pins on the big map behind the pot-bellied stove at the Thomas Mercantile had been arranged and rearranged. The town fathers had spoken sadly as their crusty hands had gently placed the pins in their new positions.  “This is where our boy...

My father, William Thomas, was eight years old when the “Spanish flu” attacked in four waves from February 1918 - April 1920, causing an estimated 675,000 deaths in the US and 17-100 million deaths worldwide.* Dad was the middle child of seven. The family lived in the small community of Swan Lake, Idaho. His older sister, Margaret (age 10 or 11 then), later wrote the following description of the family’s experiences during that era (abbreviated for 21st Century readers): “The winter of 1918 brought not only World War I but the great flu epidemic. Everybody everywhere seemed to get sick at the same time . .  Everyone (in the family) took to their beds of affliction except me . . . There were beds everywhere. Eleanor seemed to be in the worst condition. . . . Dad made a bed for her out by the dining room table, where she could be watched closely. She was also in the warmest part of the house. She says every time she opened her eyes, Dad was bending over her.  Dad and Mother trie...

  "Let God Prevail" (Russell M. Nelson's October 2020 Conference talk) -- I get it, but still -- feeling sad that 'Life, Family and Religious' rights forged in the Trump Administration will likely be reversed soon. * The Legislative Affiliate of Family Research Council "Trump Administration Accomplishments 2017-2020" https://www.frcaction.org/accomplishments 

As the China Virus clutches its dark days in world history like a vice, consider these shocking numbers of persisting US deaths resulting from Heart Disease (over 655,000 deaths per year) https://www.cdc.gov/heartdisease/facts.htm , Abortions (over 600,000 per year) https://abort73.com/abortion_facts/us_abortion_statistics/ ,  and Obesity (over 300,000 deaths per year) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_countries_by_obesity_rate .  That’s the short list. We don’t have a “cure” for the pandemic yet, but soon, we WILL. And I just wonder. When we know “scientifically” that some personal decisions affect our life spans and the life spans of others, can we give at least as much weight to our personal decisions as we give to the decisions coming from government edicts in 2020?