Our Camino Continues
Good morning... After walking 41,270 steps on day one of our Camino pilgrimage, 42,625 steps on day two, and 26,429 steps on day three, our adventure continues. We finally trekked our way to quaint country cabins with reliable internet, and I am excited to share a few photos and memories from our amazing journey. [...]
Seedlings From Sorrow
Good morning... One week ago today, we celebrated the 23rd anniversary of the terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center in New York City. Now in the dark of night, I revisit a string of short video someone sent me, videos created to honor the vibrant life living on after the devastation of 9/11/2001. The Survivor Tree represents resilience, community, and new growth after loss. Seeds are picked from this now-gorgeous tree to [...]
Come On The Camino
Good morning... Arriving from different places, at different times, embodying different life stages, our group of twelve made it to Sarria, Spain. At our kick-off dinner, we were both wildly excited and completely exhausted from crowded travel and a six hour time change. For about eight hours we flew with the full moon as it changed places with the rising sun. Leaving behind our [...]
The Bird At Her Window
Good morning... After reading yesterday's blog post, My Dad's Handwritten Note, a church friend from a while back wrote from miles away, sharing a story about her own father. Now up in the middle of the night the nearly full moon beckons me to the couch. "Sit. Stay put. Savor her tender, touching words." "Northside will always be my favorite church home experience," she remembered our important years together in a thriving young [...]
My Dad’s Handwritten Note
Good morning... I finally found the right moment to open the envelop appearing in our mailbox. One early morning, I unfolded the newspaper and out dropped a note in my dad's handwriting, "We thought that you will enjoy this article. Love, Mom & Dad." "The Camino increasingly draws spiritual pilgrims who are non-religious," reads the title of the article written by Ellie Davis. "In her early [...]
Hope For Elizabeth’s Family
Good morning... When Elizabeth and her husband Graham received her colon cancer diagnosis, prayer was their first response. With honesty and faith she blogged about her cancer journey, inviting us to join their family in fervent prayer. At age thirty-nine, Elizabeth went to heaven this summer, and our prayers continue to surround this special family. Offering an update, I thought you would enjoy reading the posts Graham shared over the past few months. [...]
Our First Response
Good morning... "Make prayer your first response instead of your last resort," a friend shared a quote she had read somewhere. There are so many different forms of prayer. Laying in bed and letting our worries fall into the hands of God. Prayers sent up like arrows to heaven. "LORD, help me." "Please guide me." "God, thank you so much." Silent prayers, sitting, kneeling, walking. Collective prayers lifted together or apart. Prayers written [...]
Develop Intimate Certainty
Good morning... Yesterday's post ended with this Scripture verse: O Eternal One, through the night, I stop to recall Your name. That’s how I live according to Your teachings (Psalm 119:55, VOICE). A few hours later, as I taught class in our home, I was drawn to read out loud one page from a devotional book I wrote in 2011, Touching Truth: Grasping the Grace of God. Now, as I interact with the [...]
9/11 – Our Crowded Hearts
Good morning... Last Wednesday, the sun rose on a new day in Winder, Georgia, a quaint, welcoming community less than an hour outside of Atlanta. Students, heading into a normal day at Apalachee High School, were suddenly terrorized by a 14-year-old shooter. Nine were injured. Four people died. Mason Schermerhorn (14). Christian Angulo (14). Richard Aspinwall (39). Christina Irimie (53). Let's write their names on the walls of our crowded hearts and pray [...]
Unimaginable Kindness
Good morning... Recently, I received an email from a faithful, longtime friend. "In a world often characterized by division, this is an opportunity for us to come together in a simple yet powerful way," she wrote. "Research shows it takes just 30 days to build a new habit. So here's the KIND30 challenge: extend one small act of kindness every day in October, which is also Mental Health Month." She went on to [...]
Choose To Be Kind
Good morning... Hope lingers from our animated discussion yesterday, as together we unpacked thoughts from the first section of The Great Spiritual Migration: How the World's Largest Religion is Seeking a Better Way to Be Christian by Brian D. McLaren. Now up in the middle of the night, I open my book and revisit underlined sentences, sentences which feel essential to God's living, breathing invitation. ...the Spirit is calling us, not to dig [...]
Audrey’s At Notre Dame
Good morning... Oh, how I remember these dorm move-in days with all four of our kids. It has been pretty amazing to receive texts and photos of Audrey DeShelter's move-in experience at Notre Dame. Yesterday, her mom Jennifer posted about Audrey's transition on Facebook. So much beauty amid so much challenge. Prayers abound. Constantly prayers abound. With Audrey in mind, I marvel at God and ponder [...]