Good morning... After melting down, overwhelmed and discouraged, my friend received this encouragement. "In this life, we are all just walking up the mountain and we can sing as we climb or we can complain about our sore feet, whichever we choose we still gotta do the hike," says the instagram post. "I decided a long time ago, [...]
Good morning... The waxing moon, three nights before full, casts a funky design on our bathroom floor, and moonlight paints cool shadows all over our living room walls. Beckoned barefoot out into the mild night, I marvel at the dark branches stretching toward the light of the moon. [...]
Good morning... Yesterday morning, I made a mistake. I dated our blog post January 11, 2023. Not 2024. I would have missed the error, except that I pushed the "Previous" button at the top of the page and this is the old message that promptly popped up. _______________________________________________________ I Want That [...]
Good morning... Collected with discarded Christmas trees, our son brought home a gorgeous, white poinsettia, a lovely plant who is slightly past her prime. First, I drizzle water on her drying soil. Then, I tenderly pluck off her crumpled up parts - leaves, blooms, empty stems. Finally, I find the perfect spot for her to rest on the [...]
Good morning... Twenty-nine years ago today, on January 6th, I gave birth to a five pound fifteen ounce little boy, three days past his due date. Look at him now. He's faithful, he's grounded, he's newly married to a Spirit-filled, gentle woman. How fun it is to see a single seed of God growing up into its own [...]
Good morning... Amid life's complexity, I choose a mug each morning. Black coffee is warm and welcoming, a half-caff companion. Here's a perfect mug choice for this very day. Misshapen and made by a stranger named Jillian, this Goodwill treasure understands the patchiness of our lives, our one-of-a-kind fragments oddly molded together. Naked. Stained crimson. Random parts form [...]
Good morning... "God in stereo!" she emailed me after yesterday's post, What's The True Purpose Of Prayer?" She shared with me a devotional message she had just read, a message amplifying the process of metamorphosis, God's Spirit gradually transforming ordinary people, like you and like me, into the very image of Christ. ****** "Truth For Life Daily: Alistair [...]
Good morning... I love meeting short poems who, very simply, speak God's truth. ****** Sympathetic Resonance by Rosemerry Wahtola Trommer All day, I feel the throbbing of other lives, other pain, as if I’m a string on the piano that goes unplayed, and yet vibrates when the hammer strikes other strings, and then— your ache, my ache, two [...]
Good morning... I revisited. I reworked. I reimagined yesterday's blog post. I revisited, reworked, reimagined with God for a very long time. (If you feel drawn, please check out the new version of The Fence Around My Heart). Then I opened up the Wednesday blessing from author Kate Bowler, a prayerful email waiting for my time and attention. [...]
Good morning... "Sue," she emailed me from miles away. "I know that you follow Nouwen and sometimes I think his words are too wordy and more philosophical, but this one is direct and to the point of God’s saving love. It’s one for the come-back-to list. With Nouwen dying in 1996, these words weren't written last week, obviously, [...]
