Good morning... When we are afraid we begin to draw lines. "Us or them." "In or out." "Bad or good." Our lines litter our own comfort zone, shutting out others, "No. No. No." The very first female did the exact same thing. We pick up Eve's story in Genesis 3:1-3. Now the serpent was more crafty than any of [...]
Good morning... "All great spirituality teaches about letting go of what you don’t need and who you are not," says Richard Rohr, American Franciscan friar who is a beloved, prolific writer. "Then, when you can get little enough and naked enough and poor enough, you’ll find that the little place where you really are is ironically more than enough [...]
Good morning... As she and I talked after yesterday's class, God's Spirit revealed wisdom: "Comparison kills. Conversation brings life." When we catch ourselves comparing, beating ourselves up for not being "good enough" or seeing ourselves as "superior somehow" to someone else, might our brain tell our heart to raise a white flag of surrender? In times of combat, the [...]
Talking after class, we stumbled upon God’s peace-making wisdom: "Comparison kills. Conversation brings life." Often we catch ourselves comparing, beating ourselves up for not being "good enough" or seeing ourselves as "somehow superior." Might this be the perfect time for our brain to tell our heart, “Raise your white flag?” In times of combat, the white flag is recognized [...]
Good morning... I am not sure we have ever had a more meaningful discussion than yesterday's talk in our young moms' class. We talked about prayer. About praying earnestly and not always getting what we want. How do we sort out what God is up to? When do we arrive at our tipping point, where our personal will is [...]
Good morning... How do we live through excruciating pain? We turn to Luke 22:41-45 (NIV) to discover a pathway. How did Jesus live through his darkest hours? 1) He withdrew a stone's throw beyond even his inner circle friends. We too give ourselves permission to withdraw, to separate, to take space away from even those we love the most. [...]
Good morning... Because I did not grow up catholic and I have never wrestled competitively like my husband and our sons, I have never fasted. Until yesterday. A few weeks back, I happened upon these words in the book we are reading for our Spiritual Direction training program. Saint Ignatius of Loyola "spoke not of extended fasts but rather [...]
Good morning... She read aloud her favorite quote from this week's chapter, "...as people journeying in faith, we have committed ourselves, deep in our hearts, to trust that whatever the future holds, it will always unfold in ways that ultimately, though perhaps not immediately or visibly, lead to more and more fullness of life, for each and for all." [...]
Good morning... As I was texting back and forth with a close friend recently diagnosed with cancer, the words from an old hymn came bubbling up, "Trust and obey, for there is no other way to be happy in Jesus but to trust and obey." We were both drawn to the simplicity of focus. Be happy in Jesus. Trust. [...]
Good morning... "I guess I view Lent as a season of shaking," I said as I stepped to the microphone to end our Women's Lenten Communion Service. I explained that one of my favorite Christmas traditions is cutting down a fresh Virginia pine from a nearby tree farm. We go together as a family, circling around and around to [...]
