Be Electrically Aware
Good morning... “Prayer, according to Brother David, is waking up to the presence of God no matter where I am or what I am doing," writes Barbara Brown Taylor, in An Altar in the World: A Geography of Faith. "When I am fully alert to whatever or whoever is right in front of me; when I am electrically aware of the tremendous gift of being alive; when I am able to give myself wholly [...]
Dismantling Our Wall
Good morning... We were wired by God so very differently. One more this, the other more that. With differences dividing us, neither one of us felt safe being our true self with each another. Naive to the damage we felt or inflicted, we bulldozed each other back and forth. God's light shined on both of us, seeing all sides of our flawed relationship. Quietly defending, we each picked up [...]
Ah-ha Moments
Good morning... "Sue - I’m having the most amazing ah-ha moments right now," she wrote. "I had to share this with you, both, because it relates to your recent stories of friendships dying & because I’m so grateful God is walking beside me so closely, leading me to new understanding & transformation - some truths I think I’ve been scared to face before." "Talking with my 'cohort' buddy today, who is not a subscriber [...]
A Friend Understands
Good morning... In her text yesterday she made reference to her all time favorite blog post. I dug around and found it. I first shared this message with our online community on my birthday, March 23rd, in 2015. ****** Welcome Aboard the Train of Life by Sue Allen When we are born, our Creator pushes us from the womb into the world. “Welcome aboard the train of life!” Our inner circle expands from [...]
Endings Birth Beginnings
Good morning... Soon after my longtime friend cut our ties, my husband and I went to a wedding in Virginia. The morning after we arrived, I woke and went on a walk down an unfamiliar path. When the road forked, I noticed a less traveled path. Robert Frost's poem came to mind: "Two roads diverged in a wood, and I— I took the one less traveled by, And that has made all the [...]
When Friends Falls Apart
Good morning... I have heard from many of you who have suffered the loss of a lifelong friend due to differing beliefs, since mentioning my own unexpected loss in our recent post, Being Bulldozed. One of your responses touched me so deeply that I asked permission to share the story with our online community as God tenderizes our hearts with the Lord's loving grace. ****** On The Loss of a Meaningful Friend - [...]
Can You Hear It?
Good morning... This week, a friend sent me an inspiring music video. Sense with me the voice of God expanding out in all directions this sacred Sabbath morn. What we heard we have also seen. We have seen it in the city of the Lord who rules over all. We have seen it in the city of our God. We have heard and seen that God makes it secure forever (Psalm 48:8, NIRV). [...]
Rebuild And Restore
Good morning... It seems many of us can relate to the sensation of being bulldozed, as expressed in yesterday's blog post. The word was still on my fingertips when I ran into it in another form. "Standing here on an empty hilltop in New Hampshire, as a bulldozer slowly pushes the debris of a small red house into a neat pile," writes Katrina Kenison in Mitten Strings For God: Reflections for Mothers In a [...]
Being Bulldozed
Good morning... Our Writers' Group from church has been meeting regularly since 2008, supporting the growth of God within one another. On Tuesday night a small group of us enjoyed a spur of the moment, "pop-up" gathering in one woman's back yard. "Gals," the hostess wrote the next day. "Had I known our dinner last night would be the last in the shadow of our (borrowed) bamboo forest, I would have sat and [...]
Seek My Peace
Good morning... Walking our dog in the cool of the morning, I found a black acorn for the first time ever. Returning home, I googled, "Why are some acorns black?" Here I found a simple answer: "Producing black acorns is a sign of stress. Immature seeds die mid-growth, with the stalk, or pedicle, withering on the twig." Stress. Immature seeds. Dying mid-growth. Withering on the twig. I wonder to myself, "What are the [...]
The Circle of Love
Good morning... At the fun filled Open Air worship on Sunday night, one Friday morning Bible study friend said, "I have a book I have been meaning to drop off for you. My friend from Jacksonville, Florida gave it to me and I feel compelled to pass it along to you." I didn't think much about her kind offer until I returned from a Tuesday morning walk and talk to find this book, [...]
The Balm Of One Boy
Good morning... I woke with one word on my mind. Balm. I can't even remember the last time I used "balm" in a sentence. When have you thought "balm" recently? When a weird word wakes me, I love treasure-hunting for the gift God may want to give. Here is what I found. A balm is a soothing substance with a consistency somewhere between solid and liquid, a fragrant ointment used to heal. A remedy [...]