I’m No Superstar

I’m No Superstar is a blog for people like me who want to make a difference in the world but know they aren’t activists. Each post contains a social action idea that most of us could do, a book that’s worth reading, or a link to a website that offers other ideas. Oh, and it’s all introduced by a sometimes quirky story from my life.

5 Reasons We Need Black History Month

February is Black History Month. Signs and ads are everywhere. Yes, some of them are “blackwashing”—does Wegman’s really need to put Black History Month signs on hair products meant specifically for African-Americans’ hair? Don’t let the advertiser bandwagon keep you from taking advantage of the authentic offerings of this month, including the highlighted books, movies,

Protecting Your Heart and Head

In all the years I’ve been around the church, I’ve heard many sermons and been part of many Bible studies talking about the armor of God in Ephesians 6. We learned of truth-girded loins, the breastplate of righteousness, the footwear of peace, the shield of faith, the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the

Seek the Light, Be the Light

In the beginning the Word already existed.    The Word was with God,    and the Word was God.He existed in the beginning with God.God created everything through him,    and nothing was created except through him.The Word gave life to everything that was created,     and his life brought light to everyone. John 1:1-4  I love Christmas lights. Les and I make

The Irresistible Aroma of Grace

I parked near the side entrance to the mall, snagging a spot as close to the door as possible. The weather was strange, and I hurried to get inside without the need of an umbrella. The automatic doors spread open, and suddenly the aroma of cinnamon enveloped me. No, not just cinnamon, cinnamon and butter.

A Year for Ashes

War. Death.Volcanic eruptions.Tsunamis.Destruction. It’s been a year. I didn’t grow up in a faith tradition that even acknowledged Ash Wednesday. (That was for those “liberal” mainline churches.) When my husband began pastoring, he began adding select services from the liturgical calendar to our church’s calendar. But even when we held an Ash Wednesday service, it

Make the call

I didn’t call my brother Bob on Thanksgiving. I was on vacation, exploring Colonial Williamsburg, and he was in New Hampshire taking care of business at a Christian conference center. I didn’t know if he was spending the day with his wife’s extended family, or dealing with a maintenance issue on the camp property, but

Long-burning hope

I was scrollingthrough Twitterjust before thefirst Sunday of Adventand saw this tweet: That’s a cool idea, I thought. “The Hope candle burns the longest.” It makes sense that we need hope in our lives to burn the longest, to be there, alight, to the—hopefully not-bitter—end. We want it to carry us through. We need it

Jesus didn’t die for my rights

If you happened to notice that I haven’t posted a blog in a while, there’s a reason. It’s this blog post, which I knew I wanted to write, or needed to write, but feared to write. When Jesus died on the cross, he died to put us into a right relationship with God. He died

 

Have Carol Speak For Your Group

An accomplished and flexible speaker, Carol tailors her topics to fit the theme and timeframes of your meeting, conference, seminar or retreat.