JONATHAN C DOW

Someone Else's Mess

Sometimes there's grace to clean it up

A number of years ago, we made the 22 hour trip to Maine with our dog, Sophie. She loved the cottage where we stayed and enjoyed taking long naps on the cozy couch opposite the fireplace. One afternoon, a neighbor came by to introduce herself with her three Labrador Retrievers in tow. Not confident in how Sophie might react to these canine . . .

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February 01, 2020

Missed the Bus?

Growing up in a small town seven miles north of our public school campus meant that we had to catch the bus quite early in the morning. Because the high school started first, my sister was usually at the bus stop around 6:15 am. About a half hour later, I would join the other middle schoolers in my neighborhood to wait for our turn on #49.

. . .

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March 03, 2019

Do You Have a Need to Know?

My Waze and God's Ways

Every weekday, I drive into downtown Nashville using a navigation app on my phone. Mindful of the adventure of navigating through a city that is experiencing unprecedented growth, I am grateful for the heads up that it provides alerting me to delays, hazards, and even potholes along the way!

On a recent trip, while attentively . . .

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March 26, 2018

Upset and Troubled

"Martha, Martha, you are worried and bothered about so many things" (Luke 10:41 NASB).

The One who spoke those words so long ago gently reiterated them to me as I drove to work one recent morning. Agitated (and perturbed for feeling so irritated), I clung white-knuckled to the steering wheel, lost in an inarticulate yet . . .

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February 06, 2018

Just Because You Can...

Doesn't Mean You Should

One of the intersections I pass through every day is at the foot of an interstate off-ramp. Because of the duration of the light pattern, drivers tend to pull out their cell phones, put on their makeup, fix their hair, dust off their dashboard, and even clean the inside of their windshield when the light turns red.

One morning, while . . .

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July 15, 2017

"End of Cycle"

Reflections Inspired by an Old Clothes Dryer

Our 15-year-old dryer has an “End of Cycle” signal. When set to “on,” the dryer emits a piercing, five-second buzz at the completion of the cycle. Let me simply say, when the cycle is over, you know it!

I am mindful, however, that we are not always offered this luxury in life and in ministry. The One who . . .

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January 21, 2017

Entry Points of Grace

"Hey, can you hold the door for Me?"

Not too long ago, my wife and I drove to a place to which we had never been. A sense of uneasiness crept in as unanticipated traffic slowly drained the surplus time before our scheduled appointment. The stress increased when our GPS unashamedly proclaimed, “you have arrived” when we clearly had not. Trying to maximize our . . .

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November 12, 2016

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