Good morning... "Is grief ever really resolved?" I wonder to myself. The lives of some loved ones have ended abruptly. Others have endured a long, harsh season of dying. All are deeply missed by those who live on. As I walk alongside many grieving people, I wonder, "Is grief ever really resolved?" 'Resolve' is an interesting verb. In Latin, [...]
Good morning... I wake with a weird sentence saturating my brain. "Our tub is the epicenter of our healing." I told you. Weird. I am compelled to follow this 'epicenter' inkling. I discover, in greek, the root word means 'on the center.' The true center of movement, from which shock waves radiate. The command post or control center. The [...]
Good morning... Yesterday was the first Thanksgiving their loved one was not physically present at their earthly feast, having crossed over to heaven last spring. In a brand new way, this grieving family is making mashed potatoes. As I listened to his mourning mom talk about the conversations around their dinner table this fall, she said, "I have grown [...]
Good morning... My daughter said, "Mom, you have to read the article I just sent you. It's about the boy I know from Ole Miss who took his life." Opening her email, I read these heartbreaking words from the Clarion-Ledger newspaper article. "Rivers sent a text moments before pulling the trigger. He wrote: 'Mom, I love you, and I [...]
Good morning... “The accumulated sorrows of your exile (your being barred from comfort, your being kept from closeness, your inability to feel completely at home) will dissipate,” whispers the LORD through the pen of an Old Testament prophet. Zephaniah 3:19-20 in the Message translation continues: “I, your God, will get rid of them, your sorrows, for you. You’ve carried [...]
Good morning... Often the truth God teaches me daily, personally is echoed in the online meditation I receive from the Henri Nouwen Society at 5:05 am each morning. Yesterday was no different. I put a microphone to God's whisper, "Blend your 'being' with your 'doing' so all becomes an energizing prayer." Then I opened Nouwen's 11.17.16 devotional: "All Jesus' [...]
Good morning... I love the contemporary worship service at Northside Church. I am welcomed each week by singers and musicians gifted in ways I am not. Music can disintegrate the thin veil between earth and heaven. Yesterday morning, my imperfect voice joined in praise with the live band, merging my heart and with the heart of our God. Enjoy [...]
Good morning... Still shocked by the loss of her loved one, my friend sent out a "thank you" email to those whose prayers now carry her. God shared through her hurting heart life-giving words, words I now share with you. "His service was amazing. It glorified God, celebrated his young life and faith and was attended by approximately 1500 [...]
Good morning... At a high school graduation party last night, I met for the first time the husband of a Bible study friend. He was fascinating to talk with, authentic and faith filled. He shared with me how his first wife had died of breast cancer in her early thirties, a few years younger than he was at the [...]
Good morning... "So much has been given to me I have not time to ponder over that which has been denied." These words, penned by Helen Keller, touch me deeply. They remind me of a sentence I emailed this week to a grieving friend: "I am hoping the lovely, precious, beautiful memories serve to sustain you in your darkest [...]
