Marty poses with Ruth and Lowry Mallory in their home, a year ago in January.

February 1, 2015–Saturday proved sunny and dry. Today it’s a stay-at-home Sunday. Church services were canceled.

The overnight snowfall is dancing in the wind, even as new snows fall. It’s the kind of heavy, wet snow that children will love. Yesterday meteorologists were in their element, their supercharged drama now playing across a wide swath of the mid-West.

We had a touch of Sunday yesterday, a holy moment with friends. We visited Lowry and Ruth Mallory. They were part of a small group with us for many years. Our group averaged eight or nine members. We usually met every two weeks. Our agenda, with an opening and closing litany, included catch-up sharing, dessert and beverage, a meditation by the host(s), and prayers for requests we tallied.

With moves and travel our group no longer meets, yet we stay in touch. Lowry is mostly housebound. I asked him what wisdom he would share with us as we move through 2015. “Keep your eyes on Jesus,” he instantly responded. That’s one of the few things he is able to do, he said. Thanks, Lowry, for your one-sentence sermon, honed throughout your life. May the snows outside our windows be like manna for hungry souls, eyes fixed daily on Jesus.