2011

What I'm Reading: Recent Articles about Disability

A moving story from the LA Times of a South Korean pastor who cares for dozens of abandoned babies with disabilities: "South Korean Pastor Tends Unwanted Flock."

"New Study Implicates Environmental Factors in Autism," from the New York Times. A new study of twins released online ...

Why We Don't Invite Our Friends to Church

For a long time, I thought church should be a place where I could invite my friends who don't believe in Jesus. Actually, I should be more specific. I thought Sunday morning church services should be places where I could invite my friends who don't believe in Jesus. I don't ...

Another Reason to Love Your Neighbor

In case we needed another reason to love our neighbors as ourselves, it turns out that it might just come in handy. As this NPR story reports, "A researcher's data suggest that ambulances, firetrucks and government aid aren't the principal ways most people survive during and ...

Publisher's Weekly Reviewed A Good and Perfect Gift and...

...they liked it!

I've been grateful already for the responses from various people who have endorsed my book, the first official review of A Good and Perfect Gift comes out next week in Publisher's Weekly. Among other things, they write:

Becker (Penelope Ayers: A Memoir), a Princeton ...
Penny Says the Pledge of Allegiance

Happy Fourth of July!

What I Learned on our Family Vacation

I learned that we can travel for thirteen hours in our Swagger Wagon without hurting one another, especially during a three hour nap:

I learned that, much as Peter and I love Chipotle, our kids prefer different fare (although they did greatly enjoy the techno music in the background): ...

Did You Miss Me?

Okay, that's about the most narcissistic title for a blog post I can imagine–sorry! But some of you might have noticed that I haven't responded to any comments in the past week, and I didn't post anything on Tuesday or Wednesday. Because we took a family vacation (check back ...

Gendercide: Over One Hundred Million Missing Baby Girls

I have a new post for her.meneutics called "The Lost Girls of India and China" that reports on the ongoing problem of "gendercide," or abortion based upon the sex of the fetus. The post begins:

Across most cultures and throughout time, parents have wanted boys more than they ...
Talking with Rachel Simon

A few weeks ago, I reviewed Rachel Simon's new novel, The Story of Beautiful Girl. As I wrote earlier, the book is a lovely story that travels a road of despair and delight, weaving together themes related to disability and faith. I loved it.

But it gets better. Rachel Simon ...

The Ethics of Time

When I went to the spiritual spa last week, I brought a few books with me. I've been slowly making my way through John Stott's The Cross of Christ, and I brought Tim Keller's latest, King's Cross. But I didn't open either one. Instead, I started reading Judith Shulevitz'sThe ...

College, Down Syndrome, and the Plans we Have...

It happens all the time. Friends talk about our children, their own children, their grandchildren with reference to where they'll go to college. College motivates some seven year olds we know (or, perhaps I should say, motivates the parents of some seven year olds) to play lacrosse, ...

Perfectly Human: I Am Only Human by Mey Lau

When I was younger and I heard the word disabled, I never really felt that tug at my heart or that compassion I saw so many others portray. In fact, other than Paul, the guitar player at our church with Down Syndrome, I never really had the opportunity to interact with someone ...

Summer Reading--What's On Your List?

Her.meneutics, the Christianity Today women's blog, has posted a list of books that contributers will be reading this summer (myself included). It's a fabulous list. Click here to read it and check back in on Friday for some of my initial thoughts on my summer reading book, ...

Why This Cover? Questions about a Good and Perfect Gift Part Two

A year ago, my agent suggested I spend some time in bookstores looking at covers. "Jot down what you like, and, as much as you're able, why you like it."

It was much harder than I expected. I figured out that I like matte finishes instead of glossy ones. I like lower case letters. ...

Profound Thoughts From Children...

We're trying to get William to sleep in the same room as Penny so that Marilee can move into his crib and out of the bassinet and out of our room. We thought it would be pretty easy. We've been paving the way for the move with "sleepovers" for a while now. And on those nights, ...

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