About Karen Thomas Olsen
Born and raised in Ohio, I attended college and graduate school in Indiana, moved to Scotts Valley, California south of San Jose to teach, back to Ohio for many years, to Arizona for 11 years with my husband, and finally to Ft. Wayne, Indiana to be near family. (Leaving Prescott Valley, Arizona in 2018 was very hard. Sigh. But for family? Worth it.)
I have taught in three Christian high schools and one community college. My first teaching position was in Scotts Valley, California. In the summer of 1980, a tall, dark, and handsome 26 year old California boy, who had recently completed his degree in Aeronautical Operations from San Jose State University, followed me to Columbus, Ohio where I had accepted a new teaching position at Worthington Christian High School.
There in Worthington we were married. Paul became an Air Traffic Controller, and we raised two beautiful girls in Piqua and Troy, Ohio. We now also have a son-in-law and two precious grandsons born in 2009 and 2012. In 2007, Lockheed Martin transferred my husband to Prescott Valley, Arizona, which was a great adventure for us. Arizona was a good place for my health and great for Paul, a California boy who loves the sunny southwest! However, being far from family is not easy. So, in July of 2018 we moved to Ft. Wayne, Indiana, where we are near relatives and just hours from each of our daughters, one near Chicago and one north of Cincinnati.
For years, I worked in Christian school curriculum design and development, which was challenging, exciting, and satisfying. After retiring in the summer of 2012, I focused on completing a doctorate, pursuing some writing projects, and being involved in Christian education at our church. Maintaining this blog continues to be important to me. With great gratitude to the Lord who carried me through the process, I graduated from Trinity Theological Seminary in August, 2016, earning a DRS (Doctor of Religious Studies) with an emphasis in theology. My dissertation is entitled "A Taxonomic Theology of Suffering and Joy Designed to Assist in Christian Growth."
Besides reading, learning, teaching, and writing, I love to swim, stroll around the neighborhood on my bike, take Water Aerobics classes, mingle with neighbors, and participate in our local church. As my health permits, I love to travel and see God’s amazing creation.
I’m wearing my eye glasses or “life lenses” which instruct me to “Look for the Lord in every page of Scripture, in every corner of nature, and in every chapter of my life." No matter the direction of my life, it's a journey north.
We have entered the monsoon season here in the highlands of central Arizona. It is another season within the summer. The broad, naked blue skies, vibrant with sunlight, have been overtaken by vast, billowy clouds and gentle hues of blue, violet, and gray with patches of pink, peach, and orange. Entranced by the skies, I walked the house-less circle behind our cul-de-sac yesterday evening. “The heavens declare the glory of God” (Psalm 19:1), and as the sun fell behind the mountains, the misty sky busily declared and declared. I did not have a camera with me, but if I did, the glory would have refused to be reduced to pixels.
Standing in place, I slowly circled and circled, eyeing the beauties a full 360 degrees. Continue reading →
It’s time to turn a corner. Will you turn it with me? I know. Who knows what’s around it? (God.) Well, I’ll tell you what’s up. I would like to share my biblical research with you and others. With the Lord’s help, I plan to look for an agent and a publisher to help me transform my doctoral research project into useful material (spiritual nutrition and exercise) for the Body of Christ. That’s you (and me too!) .
I’d like to use this blog to find other people who are interested in my research topic, so I’m going to share the heart of the research with you. I’d like to ask you to forward my blog to everyone you know who may find meaning and blessing through this research. My topic, suffering and joy, is relevant to everyone.
I’ve worked on this project for three years, praying, searching Scriptures, evaluating life, and seeking God’s leading in my researching and writing. The product is a theology of suffering and joy: the doctrine of the dance between suffering and joy. (The title of this post employs a different metaphor.) I use some some special vocabulary which I will share with you, but don’t let words become walls. I’ll break terms down through meanings and usages.
I have constructed two taxonomies. Taxonomies are filing systems — ways of categorizing and organizing things. The color wheel categorizes colors. Your pantry organizes your food supply. The Plant Kingdom and Animal Kingdom with all their sub-data are taxonomies that help us identify and understand plants and animals.
This study’s first taxonomy, The Taxonomy of Suffering, names our pains. A corresponding Taxonomy of Joy responds to each kind (taxon) of pain. Here is the title of my doctoral research project:
A TAXONOMIC THEOLOGY OF SUFFERING AND JOY
DESIGNED TO ASSIST IN CHRISTIAN GROWTH
Would this interest you or anyone you know? Continue reading →
“For God, who said, ‘Light shall shine out of darkness,’ is the One who has shone in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Christ. But we have this treasure in earthen vessels, that the surpassing greatness of the power may be of God and not from ourselves.”
II Corinthians 4: 6-7
I ended the last post with “to be continued.” Well, it has taken me long enough to continue! I was preparing to tell a bit about what I’ve learned about health from my studies and experience. But what has kept me from this blog? I have been completing my doctoral research project. I’m now revising my final draft and should graduate in two months! Before I discuss my doctoral research, I need to share some thoughts about personal health. Does your earthen vessel require much attention? If not, how blessed to be able to take it for granted! Continue reading →
Hello! I have not forgotten you! I wrote a long post in January, and then set it aside to think on it. Do I really want to share this? I see I never posted it and haven’t posted anything since before Christmas! If I were to treat my blog like Facebook, I would post lots of pictures of our three week trip to the Midwest in December and January to visit family and friends in Chicago, Indiana, and Ohio. ‘Twas grand.
But I always develop a topic or thought. So, the following includes the first part of what I wrote last month. Reflecting on the last few years, I observe in my rear view mirror some rays refracting toward the future, encouraging me that some changes I’ve made have improved my life and hopefully, my future. I hope the same for you. Continue reading →
I’m praying for those who read this post: May you receive Christ’s blessings to you this season. “Please note: Salvation is God-given, God-driven, God-empowered, and God-originated. The gift is not from man to God. It is from God to man.”* Continue reading →
It can’t be avoided. The older we get, the more that life is behind us rather than in front of us. Often I wrestle with this blinding, “under the sun” perspective. I miss much of my past: the chatter of two, little girls and all their activity in our house, the planning of family gatherings, the greatly anticipated arrival of grandparents accompanied by a trunk full of garden goodies, homemade berry and cream pies, and ranger or chocolate chip cookies. Continue reading →
I wonder, I wonder. . . What percentage of people do you think consider Autumn to be their favorite time of year? I’ve heard a number of people state this recently without any solicitation on my part. It’s just an exhale: “Oh, this is my favorite time of the year!” How interesting to me, because it is my favorite time of the year too! What is your favorite season?
Season makes me think of seasoning. Ha. Then it makes me think of the Greek terms for time: chronos and kairos. Autumn should be spelled “awetum.” All the senses in the fall are in awe: the warm colors and cool breezes, the crunching leaves under stomping feet and hot, spiced cider under tantalized tongue. . . . All memory rich. . . . Continue reading →
Paper prayer partners aren’t really paper partners. They are people who have become my partners in prayer through their instructive writings. I can share in the life of Christ and Christ’s people through the written legacy that God-lovers have left. Their words have brought richness to my life. I would like to share with you some of my favorite books on or of prayer. Continue reading →
I just re-read my post from April 15 entitled, “A Case for Suffering.” Hmm. An interesting date on which to publish that post! We are now concluding July, and the summer is nearly over. When I was a child, we would not have viewed summer as nearly over at the end of July! School didn’t start until after Labor Day, but now schools begin earlier, and they take a few more breaks during the year.
Our theme today (which certainly applies to following tax laws and to getting an education) is that their is wisdom in paying attention to red lights and green lights so as to minimize harm both personally and collectively. (Is this too obvious of a wisdom, or does difficulty stalk application?) Continue reading →
I wrote a post last week but it remains lonely in my drafts. The last few months have been experientially and emotionally packed. So many things to write about. I’m overwhelmed. This past week was the second year anniversary of the deaths of our nineteen Granite Mountain firefighters here in Prescott, Arizona. They died, defending people and homes in Yarnell, Arizona from the raging flames. The day following this anniversary is my birthday. What a juxoposition. . . . Continue reading →
Journey North Character 