We had the coldest spring in 50 years and the wettest July on record. This made for an even shorter summer in a place that is known for short summers. My lilac bush bloomed late in the first week of July, and in the first week of August almost all of the blossoms are gone. It simply reminds me that we are surrounded by 'temporary' things. Isaiah 40:8 says, "The grass withers, the flower fades, but...  Read More

39 roses. It's an odd number, to be sure. Each one represents a different year of my life. No, I'm not saying that I'm 39 years old- that birthday is well behind me. It's been 39 years since I said two little words that changed my life. I said, "I do." Those words are not a guarantee, they are a covenant promise. A bride and groom promise to LOVE each other. They do not promise to be IN love. They...  Read More

Except for the fortunate few who live in remote places, the logistics of hunting Alaska are very different from climbing into your tree stand after work. For most of us, every hunt is an expedition. Planning and packing are critical to success- even more so if you are flying in a Super Cub. Weight and volume matter. The goal is the lightest and best quality and least amount of gear that you can ge...  Read More

Occasionally, when hiking across the arctic tundra, you'll see a flash of pure white on the ground in the distance. Like deer, moose and elk, every year caribou shed their antlers.  It is possible to go for days without seeing a caribou, and yet to pick up a number of sheds or even an entire skull and antlers off a wolf kill. It is rock-solid evidence that life was once here- that a caribou once s...  Read More

In the mountains, the weather can change almost in an instant. On our first morning in the Brooks Range that worked in our favor. All night was 100% cloud cover and rain, so when we stepped out of our tent early in the morning to blue sky, it immediately lifted my spirits. A lot of time and effort went into this hunt, and I wanted the girls to enjoy it. Good weather is a gift that Alaskan hunters ...  Read More

After driving nearly 800 miles and then flying in a bush plane, I was disappointed that I couldn't get my girls on a nice bull caribou. We were hunting for our winter meat, and a big bull has fully twice the meat of a cow. Even so, my girls both shot caribou and then helped cut them up and pack them out- one load of meat at a time- in their backpacks. There was no complaining, no "This is too hard...  Read More

When I say that the great strength of a woman lies in her femininity, I do not mean to equate her feminine nature with being afraid of hard labor or getting her hands dirty. Actually the contrary is true. My daughters are as comfortable in the wilderness wearing a backpack as they are in a city wearing a dress. When I took the two of them caribou hunting north of the Arctic Circle, I was proud of ...  Read More

To be a 'princess' is wrapped up in the heart of a girl. And why not? Deep inside every little girl knows she was created to be a daughter of The King. Her true strength- her greatest strength- is found in her femininity. It is a magnificent thing to be 'woman' created in the image of God. There is something forceful- regal- about a woman's strength when it is cloaked in gentleness and good humor....  Read More

For many people, Alaska is an entire 'world' away from family. And for most of those people 'outside', it seems even farther than that. This makes those times when family come to visit us extra special. This last week, my mother and three of my nieces made a very short visit. We shared meals, games around the table, prayer, and- yes, Alaskan adventures. Family was God's idea. He created the very f...  Read More

Twenty years ago I screwed up my courage, bought 7,000 linear feet of log from a mill, and built our house. You see, Laura and I wanted a home that could host large groups of people, and in six years of looking couldn't find a single one that we could afford. Choosing to host others serves a number of purposes. 1) Gratitude- We've had dozens of mission teams come to Alaska to help build our church...  Read More

The world in front of me was almost entirely without color. Of course there was black and various shades of white and gray, but no blue sky, no green plants, no flowers, no sun. It was barren and lifeless. The Gulkana Glacier's moraine became more and more desolate as I continued to climb. Sometimes life feels that way, doesn't it? Our circumstances seem gray and dull- lifeless. But as I looked cl...  Read More

Friends of ours flew up from Florida, rented a car, drove far more than 1000 miles, took a bus through Denali National Park, and in all that time never saw a moose. After enjoying dinner at our house, we opened the door to let the dogs out and a bull moose was standing at the foot of our steps. That's Alaska. That's just life, isn't it? It's often said, "There are no guarantees." That is only part...  Read More