If you’ve followed Enjoying the Surface for any amount of time, you’ve read enough of the posts here to see that there are strong themes on worry, anxiety, fear and the like. These are struggles familiar to me, as well as those that I find are familiar to my fellow man. To be human requires struggling with … Continue reading Free from Worry
The year was 1978. The location was a mysterious island in the Pacific where visitors came to live out all sorts of fantasies at a sort of hotel. The proprietor of this hotel was a Mr. Roarke, whose assistant, Tattoo, would shout, “The plane! The plane!” upon the arrival of these guests by air. And … Continue reading Look, Dad! The plane! The plane!
I am, more oftentimes than not, a Marlin. No, this is not my post about my being drafted by Miami (the Angels would pick me first anyway). And I am not referring to the giggling one in Cabo. The Marlin I’m referring to is that of Nemo’s dad, played by Al Brooks, in Pixar’s Finding … Continue reading Don’t Be A Marlin
Back in the day, Baskin Robbins used to have a flavor of the month. Remember that? And it would be something pretty special. A unique combination that you’d want to be sure to try because you knew you would like it. Well, fast forward some years later, and a part of me has taken a … Continue reading Flavor of the Month
I’ve been confronted with a harsh reality. More harsh than things most of us want to realize or admit to, yet there was really no getting around it. The harsh reality for me is that I am not in control of the world. A big surprise, I know. But this is one area that I’ve … Continue reading Ducks in a Row
In recent weeks, I’ve been reflecting on the words of turn-of-the-century missionary James Fraser, who left the United Kingdom to work among China’s Lisu people. During his time in China, Fraser saw that so much of his work in ministry was taking a second place to prayer. This left him dry and worn out when … Continue reading Missionary James Fraser
In the past month, I’ve met a good dozen people who have burned out recently or felt close to burnout. It wasn’t too long ago that I felt burnout myself—continually feeling under the gun, the candle burning at both ends, regularly feeling overwhelmed with too much to do. Burnout is a regular visitor to the … Continue reading Lessons from Fred
Dear faithful reader, Happy New Year! The thought occurred to me yesterday that already this new year, which we just rang in, is already 1% over. 99% of the year is left. 99% of the year remains for you and I to live in it. And while conventional wisdom would say that we should worry … Continue reading Everyday Human Concerns
Have you ever made bread? First, you proof the yeast to see if what you have on hand will still work. If your yeast is good, you’ll most likely have a good loaf of bread. I found a recipe, thanks to a fellow blogger friend, for bread and made a loaf the other day myself. … Continue reading Provision in Times of (Potential!) Despair
