Enjoy Heaven On Earth
Good morning... This morning, I feel drawn to make two lists in my journal. Left column: World's Way. Right column: God's Way. Then I brain dump words into each category. World's Way: Comply. Compete. Control. Act nice. Avoid pain. Look good. Perform. Perfect. Please people. Make money. Accumulate stuff. Be the best. God's Way: Trust God. Surrender all. Die to selfish desires. Serve others. Follow Jesus. Soak in God's love. Overflow freely. Be transformed. Now I run [...]
Our Pool Of Prayer
Good morning... In the midst of his suffering on the cross, Jesus dropped his words into the pool of prayer. Jesus called out with a loud voice, “Father, into your hands I commit my spirit.” When he had said this, he breathed his last, (Luke 23:46, NIV). In other translations, Jesus' words read, "Father, I entrust my spirit into your hands" (NLT), “Father, I put myself in your hands!" (CEV), and “Father, I place [...]
Which Way Do You Lean?
Good morning... "We are like plants full of tropisms..." writes Parker Palmer on page 6 of Let Your Life Speak. My mind wonders, "What does tropism mean?" So I google the word and learn some fun facts. The noun tropism grows from the root word "to turn." Tropisms are the turning or bending movements of a living organism toward or away from an external stimulus, such as light, heat, or gravity. This definition sparks in me [...]
God’s New Gift
Good morning... I love to notice God's new gifts expanding in the heart of ordinary people. So I adore this email from my friend. ****** Dear Sue, I have been ruminating on your recent post, Infused With Peace. Since 2003, I have been scared of the word "infusion." To me it was something that hurt, that was scary, that might not have a good outcome, and "infusion" forced me into a place I did not want [...]
Comforted In Community
Good morning... From Jacksonville, Florida to Atlanta, Georgia, one subscriber sent an interesting quote to comfort our community: "I remember reading this quote in Tullian Tchvidjian’s (Billy Graham’s grandson) book Glorious Ruin - 'The good news of suffering is that it brings us to the end of ourselves...brings us to the place of honesty, which is the place of desperation, which is the place of faith, which is the place of freedom... God sent His son [...]
Where The Cherries Grow
Good morning... To help the family gather pictures for her funeral reception, I went to my friend's condo last week. My heart was overjoyed to see an antique painting of fruit hanging on her bedroom wall. This handprinted original was a gift she had opened from me, by-chance, at our recent “Symbols of the Soul Gift Exchange," a final exchange of wrapped gifts symbolizing something important learned together from the semester. This painting reminded both [...]
In Heaven By Dinner
Good morning... I wake on the morning of an important funeral, a funeral I am not able to attend. Funny, but it feels somehow fitting for our funky friendship to experience no formal goodbye. Formal is not her way and neither is it mine. We were strangers when she came to my living room for our weekly class. Shuffling over from the other side of life's experiential tracks, she plopped down on my couch [...]
Infused With Peace
Good morning... Yesterday's post, Living A Secret, ended with an empowering statement: I am ready for anything and equal to anything through Him who infuses me with inner strength and confident peace (Philippians 4:13, AMP). Infuse. I do not meet that word very often, yet just now I open my book to read today's Bible study homework and here are the paragraphs seeping into me. ****** My favorite translation of Philippians 4:13 is from the late Greek [...]
Living A Secret
Good morning... This morning, I curl up in the corner of our couch, nestled beneath a bushy blanket, to read the first words of the book she gave me last night. ****** Sometimes in the stillness you can hear it, the sound of a million quiet-beating hearts. We're all looking for it, searching desperately for the secret to abundance. Will this bring what I'm seeking? You can almost hear the asking echoing in every [...]
Melt Me Thin
Good morning... I heard myself say an interesting thing: "I pray that the LORD melts me all the way down, so that I grow really thin and God grows very thick." When I am afraid, LORD, thin me out. When I am angry, LORD, thin me out. When I am anxious, LORD, thin me out. Within me, please grow very thick. Lost people. Lonely people. Hungry people. Hurting people. Greedy people. Grieving people. God [...]
Our Purpose Is Born
Good morning... "I have been receiving such confirmation through you, my stewardship coach, and my therapist that reading Let Your Life Speak will be beneficial in discerning vocation," writes Mary from Charlotte, N.C., the author of the words from our recent post, Gratitude Holds Hands With Grief. She says, "Here is what really jumped out at me so far, 'True vocation joins self and service…as the place where your deep gladness meets the worlds deepest needs.' [...]
My Fingers Hold God’s Flashlight
Good morning… One of the beauties of our Everyday Blog is its interactive quality. As subscribers write me daily, we converse back and forth. In addition, when a subscriber unsubscribes, he or she can choose to let me know the reason why. One who unsubscribed this week wrote to me this message: “Honestly, recently (the last 9 months to a year) the topic of every devotional has been death – death from cancer, sudden [...]