Three Photos And A Prayer
Good morning... From a centered place of comfort, before any family members stir awake, I revisit three cell phone photos and a soulful prayer. Connecting these diverse dots from this unique week, I capture a glimpse of God's love growing among us. The first photo, a hammock resting on an autumn afternoon, breathes peace within our soul. We are prompted to slow down, to sit a while, to join the joy of nature [...]
When I Contaminate And Clog
Good morning... Sometimes I reflect the love of God clearly, kindly, calmly. At other times, when life's residue piles up, I contaminate and clog. I open Biblegateway.com right now, and the "verse of the day" feels like God's answer to my daily dilemma. My counsel for you is simple and straightforward: Just go ahead with what you’ve been given. You received Christ Jesus, the Master; now live him. You’re deeply rooted in him. [...]
A Hard And Hurtful Talk
Good morning... "Can you pray for me?" she texted. "I talked to her kindly from my heart, but she did not take it well. She's not talking to me. She said she can't say anything right now. I know I have to give her space but it's hard, because I love and care about her. All I can do is trust that the Spirit was moving in me while I spoke to her [...]
Forgotten In The Rush
Good morning... "Sue," she emailed me after yesterday's message, Pause And Restore. "Thank you for your post today! As someone who too often equates productivity with value, it’s hard for me to rest. I focus on my never ending to do lists and all of the things I should be doing. It’s nice to be given 'permission' to rest. It’s refreshing to think of sabbath not just as a time for church and [...]
Pause And Restore
Good morning... On the seventh day—with the canvas of the cosmos completed—God paused from His labor and rested. Thus God blessed day seven and made it special—an open time for pause and restoration, a sacred zone of Sabbath-keeping, because God rested from all the work He had done in creation that day (Genesis 2:2-3, VOICE). "God’s rest on the seventh day is a model for the kind of Sabbath rest He wants for [...]
Join In The Joy
Good morning... A group of us from our extended church family have been widening our sense of community as we go to PAWkids on Monday afternoons to help young students with their homework, one-on-one. When I read Nouwen's meditation yesterday morning, my soul nodded in agreement before jumping with joy. ****** DAILY MEDITATION | NOVEMBER 18, 2021 - Recognizing the Gifts of the Poor by Henri Nouwen I am deeply convinced that we [...]
Why Am I So Ugly?
Good morning... Men and women, black and white, younger and older, we unpack our mixed feelings in our therapeutic community group each Tuesday morning at PAWkids. Last week we were each deeply touched by a film clip from the 2017 movie Wonder. "Why am I so ugly?" the tearful boy asks. "Honey, listen. We all have marks on our face," says actress Julia Roberts as she comforts her sad, anxious son. Touching her [...]
Adrift Feels Very Lonely
Good morning... Adrift. She shares her truth. In so many important ways, my soul friend feels adrift. She has moved away from what has long been her church home. She has lost trust in a minister with whom she shares a deep, rich history. She feels kicked out of her extended family, a pain intensifying as the holidays near. Recently vacationing with an old friend group, she simply could not fake the fact [...]
Relationships Are Messy
Good morning... I just woke from a dream, short and intriguing. My husband had forgotten to tell me that there was a large plastic container in our backyard with a huge pile of leaves beside it. He had spent hours raking the leaves in our yard, and he expected me to somehow transfer the leaves into this big black box. I needed to do it before the winds picked up and blew the [...]
Still. Steep. See.
Good morning... "Discernment is first of all a habit, a way of seeing that eventually permeates our whole life," explains our post from yesterday, Angels Among Us. "It is the journey from spiritual blindness (not seeing God anywhere or seeing him only where we are expecting to see him) to spiritual sight (finding God everywhere, especially where we least expect it). Ignatius of Loyola, founder of the Jesuits and best known for developing [...]
Angels Among Us
Good morning... In our Friday study, we read these words aloud from Sacred Rhythms: Arranging Our Lives For Spiritual Transformation by Ruth Haley Barton. Recently I spent time with our daughter's soccer team at the beginning of a practice devoted to watching game films. We discussed the importance of game films and how it gives them an opportunity to notice mistakes they had made in the previous game (so they could do it [...]
Grieving A Child
Good morning... "Hi Sue," she wrote. "I have fully experienced how close the Lord has been in my grief, and no doubt, He alone has saved me. I do feel like He is blessing me tremendously and showing me tremendous favor as I begin to live again after Dalton’s death 5 1/2 years ago. Still so fresh." "However, there are those days, quite a few if I am being honest, when I am [...]