As we move through Holy Week -- the week between Palm Sunday and Easter Sunday as Jesus journeyed his final days to the cross-- how will you prepare your heart for the most important celebration on our Christian calendar: Easter morning?

Luci Shaw is a poet and essayist born in London, England, in 1928 who now lives in Bellingham, Washington, with her husband. Her 2020 poetry collection The Generosity is a delightful glimpse of God's hand across our lives -- from the moss of Orcas Island to the secret sounds of a cloudy day. As we anticipate Holy Week next week, listen to the ponderings of Shaw's poem "The 'O' in Hope":

In a new study conducted at Queen Mary University of London and published in PLOS Biology, researchers have discovered that bumblebees watch and learn from one another, demonstrating a level of social learning that scientists have not previously seen among insects.

In their 2022 book Telos: The Hope of Heaven Today, authors Leonard Sweet and Len Wilson encourage us to bring our understanding of heaven into daily living. Consider their words:

When Linda Williams was diagnosed with terminal cancer a year ago, she started organizing a dance party. Williams, who is 76 and lives in High Wycombe, England, says she can't stand funerals: "I've never been to a good funeral," she said. "They're miserable things, so I decided I wanted a celebration of my life." 

In just over a decade, Frida located the bodies of 43 people and rescued a dozen people. She began her career in 2010 when a massive earthquake hit Haiti and she found 12 people alive beneath the rubble. In 2017, she helped rescue survivors from a landslide in Ecuador. Several months later, she became a social media star and national icon when she assisted rescuers after the Mexico City earthquake that killed hundreds.

As we anticipate Easter Sunday on April 9, today -- Ash Wednesday -- marks the beginning of a season of introspection and spiritual self-awareness. Whether you choose to "give something up for Lent" or you are waiting for the first crocuses to bloom, how will you let this be a season of reflection and faith? What spiritual practices can you experiment with as you seek the Lord's presence this spring?

For the first time ever, the ceremonial pre-game flyover at last Sunday's Super Bowl was performed by an all-woman aviator team -- commemorating the 50-year anniversary of women pilots in the U.S. Navy.

Wallace Stegner authored more than 40 novels, short story collections, essay collections, and nonfiction treatises. Often referred to as the "Dean of Western Writers," Stegener earned the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction in 1972 for Angle of Repose and the National Book Award for Fiction in 1977 for The Spectator Bird. A Presbyterian and an Eagle Scout, Stegner taught at the University of Wisconsin and Harvard University before settling at Stanford University for the bulk of his career as a professor of creative writing and literature.

In his 1961 book The Knowledge of the Holy, A. W. Tozer opens with this statement: "What comes into our minds when we think about God is the most important thing about us."

According to American poet David Rosenberg, Jewish tradition has long avoided direct translations, instead employing such creative approaches as "midrash," an imaginative interpretation that digs into the meaning beneath the words.

This February, employees for the City of Tualatin will be hiding 175 hand-blown glass hearts around local parks, trails, and walkways as a part of their "Share the Love" campaign. Those who discover a decorative heart are encouraged to either keep it or hide it again so someone else can experience the joy of discovery.

Christian Moullec is a 58-year-old French meteorologist who is aiding the migration of a vulnerable species of white-fronted geese -- not from a lab or a classroom, but by flying alongside them.

Eighteen-year-old Brock Peters had the test of his life when he landed a single-engine plane near a two-lane highway in California's San Bernardino National Forest this week.

For many of us, the grocery store is a place where we strive for efficiency, buzzing through the aisles as we check off our list and watch for the shortest checkout line. And more often than not, a pleasant exchange with a checkout clerk or a fellow customer will mark the difference between an irritating grocery errand and an enjoyable experience.

According to a 2016 article in Harvard Business Review, most organizations don't realize how central human emotions are to building the right culture. When businesses talk about "corporate culture," they are typically referring to a kind of shared "cognitive culture": similar values, norms, and assumptions that allow a group to function effectively. But what about the impact of people's emotions in the workplace, at school, at church, in our communities, and at home?

Margaret Deland was an American poet, short story writer, and novelist who published 33 books before her death in January 1945. Born in Philadelphia in 1857, Deland lived primarily in Boston, Massachusetts, and Kennebunkport, Maine, and was best known for her Old Chester books and her novel John Ward, Preacher. 

If you haven't read Charles Dickens' A Christmas Carol in  a while (or ever!), please consider reading this gem again over the Advent season: Read it together as a family, with a friend, or on your own. The story is rife with biblical themes, and Dickens wisely reminds us of our tendency to shrug off life's most beautiful moments in pursuit of our earthly paths.

This week, Merriam-Webster Dictionary has selected the top word of 2022 -- a choice that reflects the distrust seeping through our current culture: "gaslighting."

Have you ever thought to yourself, "Once I achieve ________, or once ________ happens, all will be well"? While this continual push into the future is a common human tendency, it can deeply harm our ability to claim peace and hope in the moment.