Become Who You Are
Good morning... "The privilege of a lifetime is to become who you really are," says Carl Yung, the Swiss psychiatrist and psychoanalyst who founded analytical psychology. 'Who we really are' is established by our Creator long before the day of our birth. Each of us whispers in wonder the words of Psalm 139:13-16 (NLT). "You made all the delicate, inner parts of my body and knit me together in my mother’s womb. Thank you [...]
We Are In God – God Is In Us
Good morning... Following our opening prayer, we began a new semester. "As I read aloud the first paragraph of our book, notice which words pop out to grab you." Together we listened attentively. "When applied to the spiritual life, the metaphor of a journey is both helpful and somewhat misleading. Helpfully it reflects the fact that the essence of spirituality is a process - specifically, a process of transformation. Unhelpfully it obscures the fact [...]
We Are In God-God Is In Us
Following our opening prayer, we began a new semester. "As I read aloud the first paragraph of our book, notice which words pop out to grab you," I encouraged. Together we listened attentively. "When applied to the spiritual life, the metaphor of a journey is both helpful and somewhat misleading. Helpfully it reflects the fact that the essence of spirituality is a process - specifically, a process of transformation. Unhelpfully it obscures the fact [...]
Stranded On A Desert Island
Good morning... A funny thing happened on the way to the office. My mind zeroed in on a quirky question. So, when I got to the parking lot I sent out two group texts to inner circle friends, sharing the sentence swirling in my head: "Okay. If you were stranded on a deserted island, what habits would you establish first to make you feel 'yourself'?" Responses rolled in throughout the day. "Create a 'home,' [...]
Step Over – Travel On
Good morning... For me, this holiday season is officially over. With back to back birthdays for my husband and Jesus, December 24th and 25th, back to back birthdays for our two oldest kids, January 6th and 7th, and my high school senior's final PDC dance on January 9th, my holiday season is officially over. I love to look at my life in seasons. The art of noticing one phase ending before the next one [...]
Enjoy Life With God
Good morning... "I’ve been a nervous wreck!" she said in her email. "I’ve been praying for peace, and your weekend devotionals have really helped and reaffirmed what I already know - God is with us, He’s for us, and He has a plan. I have to trust completely in Him. And let go of worry and fear. I opened my Jesus Calling today and turned ahead to see what tomorrow, January 9, said and [...]
A Short Prayer
Good morning... I discovered a short prayer formed in the humble heart of missionary Amy Carmichael. "Holy Spirit think through me till your ideas are my ideas." May this short prayer begin to form a humble heart within each one of us. Now we have received, not the spirit of the world, but the [Holy] Spirit who is from God, so that we may know and understand the [wonderful] things freely given to us [...]
God’s Early Birthday Gift
Good morning… I received many encouraging emails hoping for a meaningful, memorable meal after yesterday's post, 'Our 6:00 am birthday party.' Truthfully, our family's early morning celebration was a complete dud. Annoyed, sleeping siblings hugged a halfhearted "Happy birthday," before climbing back into bed for an extra hour of sleep. No pancakes were eaten. Most of the eggs were thrown out. The birthday candles were extinguished, but cake and ice cream went untouched. Miraculously, [...]
Our 6:00 am Birthday Party
Good morning... On the spur of this moment, I am planning a 6:00 am surprise birthday party. My son turns 22 today. My daughter turns 20 tomorrow. Snow is predicted to shut down Atlanta this afternoon, wreaking havoc on our Plan A birthday plans. So, unbeknownst to my sleeping family, eggs and pancakes, and birthday cake and presents will greet them when they wake. My excitedly nervous daughter is transferring to a new college. [...]
Delightfully Cracked Open
Good morning... I love meeting new people in my weekly classes each semester. One special woman I met last fall sent me a beautiful blessing to begin this new year. "May you be delightfully cracked open in 2017 😉 When you start to crack open, don't waste a moment gathering your old self up into something like you knew before. Let your new self splash like sunlight into every dark place & laugh & [...]
Grace Is Not Opposed To Effort
Good morning... This time of year I absolutely love. In our Women's Ministry at Northside Church, it is our time of waiting for new rosters to form. Throughout the fall, we prayerfully consider relevant studies to offer our community. Poignant topics. Spirit-led teachers. Morning, afternoon, and evening time slots to meet a plethora of needs. We create a class line up, advertise options on our website, and wait to see who God taps on [...]
One Thing I Cling To
Good morning... The man who had everything craved even more. "What must I do to inherit eternal life?" demanded the rich, young ruler. Jesus replied in the man's achievement-oriented language, rattling off the famous checklist. "You know the commandments: ‘You shall not commit adultery, you shall not murder, you shall not steal, you shall not give false testimony, honor your father and mother.’” Impatiently interrupting our Teacher, the proud and powerful man scoffed, “All [...]