Good morning... As we drove through the valleys and the mountains of New Zealand, we had long, important talks, enjoyed good music together, and listened to a handful of interesting podcasts. I was so fascinated by one podcast that I sat in the backseat and jotted notes in my journal. Turning to those scratchings now, I put flesh on [...]
Good morning... Yesterday I told you about My Nasty Nightmare. Recently, my nightmare actually came true. As many of you know, my husband and I were given the privilege of visiting our oldest son who is ministering to college students in Brisbane, Australia this year. A two week trip to sightsee with him through Australia and New Zealand promised [...]
Good morning... "I AM part Billy Graham," wrote a subscriber after yesterday's post, Why Were You Not Billy Graham? "My mother is his youngest sister and only surviving sibling. It's been quite an intense 10 days for our family. Thanks for this reminder that we are to be who God created us to be and not someone else." Debbie [...]
Good morning... Over thirty years ago when my husband and I walked up the wedding aisle as twenty-four year old newlyweds, we could not have known we would wake today seeking God's wisdom with a community of grievers. Before crafting this morning's blog message, I dig down deep to mine the hidden gems of God's living presence. As the [...]
Good morning... "The friend who can be silent with us in a moment of despair or confusion, who can stay with us in an hour of grief and bereavement, who can tolerate not knowing... not healing, not curing... that is a friend who cares.” This Henri Nouwen quote reminds me of the "Three C" wisdom of the twelve-step program. When [...]
Good morning… One of the beauties of our Everyday Blog is its interactive quality. As subscribers write me daily, we converse back and forth. In addition, when a subscriber unsubscribes, he or she can choose to let me know the reason why. One who unsubscribed this week wrote to me this message: “Honestly, recently (the last 9 months to [...]
Good morning... "I love the last paragraph of today's post," she wrote after reading yesterday's morning message Shocked Grievers Have No Words. Given each breath, we inch our way into moment by moment. Hour by hour. Day by day. Week by week. Month by month. Season by season. Year by year. "That is exactly how we proceed after a tragic [...]
Good morning… I pick up my pen and stand in the gap for shocked grievers who have no words. Life can change abruptly. Unexpectedly. Forever. One morning we wake up to “normal” and by nightfall we toss and turn, turn and toss. “Why? How? What if?” What do we do when death destroys our face to face, skin to [...]
Good morning... Mary, my soulmate from Charlotte, N.C. whom I have never met, wrote to me from the beach yesterday. Her words are perfect and poignant. ****** My life is Blessed…But My Son Is Dead?!?! How can it be? I am taking in the majesty of God’s Kingdom at the beach in the winter…the ocean with it’s vastness, rolling [...]
Good morning... I knew exactly what she meant: "I feel like I am tiptoeing on broken glass." When life shatters into shards, we tread tenderly with loved ones, fearing their pain, fearing ours, fearing bare and bloodied feet. Vulnerably inching into grief, the only way through is through. Sometimes shoes are necessary. Sometimes they are not. I knew exactly [...]
