Trusting That Less Is More
Good morning... Amid the traffic and the long lines snaking through every store, I am convicted once again, "Sometimes less is more." Less worry. Less rushing. Less anger. Less impressing. Less "My way or the highway." God, what might it mean for me to live this day really trusting that less is more? Trust in your money and down you go! Trust in God and flourish as a tree! (Proverbs 11:28, TLB). ...Sue... [...]
Reflecting On The Slower Things
Good morning... When I wake from my second sleep, I do not flip on the lights. Instead, I plug in the single strand on our Christmas tree. Striking a yummy smelling match, I quietly light candles. One. Two. Three. Four. In darkness, we begin each day. The natural rising of the sun quietly sheds light. This week, I received a beautiful email explaining the history of a gift given through my longtime friend. [...]
Audrey And The Hour Glass
Good morning... I love hanging up Christmas cards from people we have made memories with over the years. One of my favorites from this season is the smiling faces of the DeShelter family, a close-knit family who has recently endured two rounds of Audrey's risky radioactive cancer treatment at Children's Healthcare of Philadelphia. Thriving through it all, don't they look amazing? A small group of us, the Fab Five friends, have walked closely [...]
SHOW UP With Your Gifts
Good morning... I love reading the wise words of Howard Thurman etched in the handwriting of my friend. "You are the only you that has ever lived; your idiom is the only idiom of its kind in all existences, and if you cannot hear the sound of the genuine in you, you will all of your life spend your days on the ends of strings that someone else pulls." Thurman wrote these enduring [...]
I’m Moody This Christmas
Good morning... A dear friend regularly drops off poems in my mailbox at Northside Church. He slipped in a few important ones this week, poems I picked up following yesterday's loving funeral. These words struck me as essential for this day, for these challenging times, for this unique season of life. As I light a candle in the center of our living room, I relate to [...]
Relax Into The Power Of Peace
Good morning... After walking with a friend, she took me upstairs and showed me this painting she had been given for Christmas. Magical and mesmerizing, we discussed what we noticed in this unique piece of art. A golden heart dripping with lemon drop light. Various swirling colors, playing, mixing, blending. The movement of dark and light, muted and bright, trailing down, rising up, spreading out. Now I revisit the picture of this painting [...]
Steve’s New Job
Good morning... Around 7:00 pm on Thursday night, an email was sent out by The Lovett School. After nearly 29 years of serving as the head chaplain, my husband, Steve, is taking on a new role at the school next year. As Chaplain Emeritus, Steve will expand his pastoral care to the wider Lovett community and create a global travel program benefiting students, families, faculty and alumni. Enjoy reading about this new adventure, [...]
We Fear “The Known” Ending
Good morning... After our soulful walk this week, my friend sent me two thought-provoking images. The first speaks to a common fear. Ending a year. Ending a life phase. Ending the "normal" we've come to know and to love. We often struggle with endings, don't we? The second image she shared guides us forward. What, my friends, might we do with our fear? [...]
Why Did I Just Pig Out?
Good morning... On our walk we did several essential things. We exercised in the fresh air. We walked our dogs around the horse farm. We caught up on the details of our challenging family dynamics. We reminded each other that Christmas will be here one short week from Monday. Coming home filled with feelings, I promptly "pigged out" on comfort food and sweets. Midway through a mouthful, I caught myself. I sat myself [...]
We Find Our Kneeling Places
Good morning... She read the poem aloud. Slowly. Quietly. Prayerfully. Twice, she read the poem aloud, wondering what we noticed. In this quiet moment, might we also do the same? Read slowly, quietly, prayerfully. What inklings do you notice? ****** In Search of Our Kneeling Places by Ann Weemes In each heart lies a Bethlehem, an inn where we must ultimately answer whether there is room or not. When we are Bethlehem-bound we [...]
Do Not Miss Out
Good morning... After the quirky video in yesterday's post, she wrote, "It's true that I miss God in the room all the time!" Her statement morphed into my prayer, "God, please help me not to miss You in the room today." With my eyes keenly focused on noticing, I saw God walking right through the middle of everything. In the early morning phone call with my dad in Ohio, who shared of my [...]
Focus. Focus. Focus.
Good morning... Okay, friends. So we are about one third of the way through December. Amazing how time flies. As I look back over the past ten calendar days, this is what I see. One impromptu lunch. Two holiday performances. Three happy hour gatherings. Four special worship services. Five Christmas parties. Six celebratory dinners. Tonight is the Secret Santa Shop we are creating at PAWkids. Tomorrow is the Mission Circle gathering, the staff [...]