Our youngest son graduated last Saturday from Grove City College–quite a milestone in his life. He now starts a brand new season. And how well he is starting it! Right now, he is out west with four of his closest friends, hiking in Yellowstone Park; I hear it is snowing out there… then, he will drive over to UVA and start on his Master’s Degree in Accountancy, and go on to work for Ernst and Young in Pittsburgh this fall.
I have seen this child turn into a man in the last few years, and am amazed at the kind of grace he walks in. He knows His God in such an intimate way, I am even jealous at times of his sweet relationship with Jesus. Yet I am well aware that it came at a very high cost. Daniel is not afraid of sacrifice; he knows what he wants and is willing to pay the price for it. At every turn, he makes a point to give glory to God and honor us as his parents, and I am always humbled by it.
This man of God also has the amazing ability to be a full child at any moment, and I love that about him.
I am not afraid for him. For us sometimes, yes, because he has no qualms at all to take us on adventures that we did not ask for, and at times the ride gets bumpy for the parents in the back. But for him I have no fear. With a God like His God, and a relationship with Him like that, he is going to do just fine. And take us all on in the process.
Welcome to the rest of your life, Daniel Christopher Simon Croce! (Even though they called your name David at graduation…)

I was invited to a Tea Party this week-end at a local church here in town. The decor was stunning, and I was transported to a lovely English garden the moment I walked in. The attention to details was extraordinary… The fellowship around my table was wonderful, and after a lovely lunch, I had the privilege to share the Word of God with the ladies gathered there. When I looked at all the faces, my fears simply melted away–these were God’s women, precious ones for whom Jesus gave His life; these were His chosen ones, His beloved children. I treasured the privilege of giving them the Word of God, and I loved seeing their faces drink in the truth of His Word. Oh, for ten of thousands women like these, who love Him with all that they are…

I went to a worship service last night at Grove City College. I loved every minute of it. The atmosphere of praise was precious, and I found myself changed, transported from my world of pressure, work, time constraints, worries to a place where all I saw was my Lord and His beauty. As I was standing there worshipping Him, I wished I could bottle up the sense of awe I felt, the joy flooding through my being… Just bottle it up and take it home to forever have it with me–or even better, within me.
But then I remembered truth: He Himself IS with me every second of every day. HE HIMSELF is my awe, my joy, my strength. And He never wants me to live off of yesterday’s bread. His mercies are new every morning.
“But Lord, that kind of worship is not new every morning, is it?”
“Of course it is, My Child. For I live within the praises of my people.”
Well, that settled me. He dwells within the praises of His people–start worshipping, people of God!