For the last month or so, my husband Will and I have spent some time doing what everyone who has lost a close loved one can relate to—cleaning out my Father-in-Law Norm’s house. Norm was a relatively modest man; except for his collection of illustrator artwork and specimens/lab equipment on
Note: This is a guest post written by Zach Labagh, Pastor at Allegheny Evangelical Lutheran Church in Mohnton, PA. In the last few months, due to the pandemic, I found myself and my family changing how we function completely. Our calendar that was full has now diminished to online and
During this global COVID-19 pandemic, many people have turned to a practice called comfort buying. A close sister to retail therapy (and some people have used the terms interchangeably), comfort buying is when consumers buy things solely to bring comfort to themselves in difficult times. Comfort buying is not always
On Wednesday April 8th, my Father-in-Law Norman Platnick died. He had been in the hospital for 1.5 weeks following a nasty fall down the stairs and severe head trauma and stroke. My husband Will and I were not allowed to visit him in the hospital here in Philadelphia due to
On March 7, we left to go on an 8-day cruise to the Caribbean for a planned family vacation. At that point, the coronavirus (COVID-19) had been spreading in other countries and there were a few cases on the West Coast of the U.S. Since there were no travel recommendations
I once lived in a geographic area in which there was always one “cool” or trendy church. It was the church that everyone and their mother– literally– went to for worship. No matter where you were in town, you heard about what was going on at this church. The interesting
“New year, new you.” This phrase is pretty much everywhere when a new year rolls around. The beginning of a new year seems like a natural time to start fresh and make some beneficial changes in our lives. Yet 80% of New Year’s resolutions fail. We assume that it being
Charles Dickens’ A Christmas Carol has become a classic Christmastime tradition. Whether we watch one of the many film adaptations, the stage play, or read the original written story, it has stood the test of time and continues to be a tradition every year. It’s a story that has ingrained
A few years ago, a pastor colleague of mine mentioned to me an interesting conversation he had recently with a church member. This church member asked him if he had any siblings. He responded, briefly describing the birth order of each of his multiple siblings. The church member then asked
I think everybody should get rich and famous and do everything they ever dreamed of so they can see that it’s not the answer. ~Jim Carrey From a very young age, we are told that the more money we make, the happier we will be. Rarely do we hear this