Dan R. Crawford's Page

I haven’t been sleeping well lately. I wake up in the night and am unable to get back to sleep. I’m sure it is partly due to the physical, since I am facing major surgery in the next few days. I am also sure it is partly spiritual, since this was happening, to a lesser extent, long before the need for surgery. Sometimes, when I wake up, I do so with scripture on my mind. Often the scripture comes in the form of a song or hymn. I remember many years ago, confessing this rather unusual habit…

I went to an estate sale last week. I seldom attend one of these, except this one happened to be in the home of a long-time friend and colleague. I made it OK through the living room, even though I had to see the couch and chairs where my wife and I last visited with this couple, prior to his death. Then I safely navigated the den, kitchen, patio, dining room, bedrooms, even closets, until I found his office. That is where I lost it. There was so much in that room that reminded me of him,…

In the midst of my third pandemic book, I developed writer’s block.  Wikipedia defines this as “a condition, primarily associated with writing, in which an author loses the ability to produce new work or experiences a creative slowdown.” When we were first told to shelter in place, I was extremely frustrated so I asked God what I was supposed to do with my calling, since I couldn’t go anywhere.  When I said “Amen” and looked up, my eyes…

In the early days of the Coronavirus quarantine, I was extremely restless and frustrated. Even in retirement, I’ve been running close to full speed. Sitting in my den recliner I was reading my Bible, and praying, and asking God what I was to “do” since my travel was now limited and cancellations had caused more Liquid Paper than ink on my calendar. Having just read James 1:22, “Be doers of the word,” I looked up and saw on the fireplace mantle, my wife’s display of all the books I had…