I Sketched My Answer
Good morning... "When you say, 'I believe in God,' what do you mean?" asked the final page of our assigned reading. I sketched my answer, this boat riding stick figure. The God I trust has three parts. God the Creator is like the ocean, endless water buoying me. God the living Christ surrounds me tangibly like a sturdy, hand-hewn boat. God the Holy Spirit blows me where ever I am needed, toward the [...]
Gratitude Rewires Us
Good morning... "Gratitude attracts more reasons to be grateful," whispers one little card. "Heaven is breaking through the veil all day, every day," echos The Hidden Life Awakened by Kitty Crenshaw and Dr. Cathy Snapp. "Hot coffee, warm fire, beautiful sun diamonds on the river, eyes of love looking into yours, animals, children, art, grass, cool breeze, changing seasons, beautiful melodies, delicious smells, warmth, wine, great food . . . all of these [...]
Overwhelmed, How Do We Cope?
Good morning... "Coping is something we do when we are overwhelmed," says the single note I took at our therapeutic community group at PAWkids yesterday. Instead of searching for the words in the puzzle above, I decided to search my heart, pondering the given list of helpful coping skills. Smile. Clean. Exercise. Walk. Water. Sing. Relax. Turtle. Laughing. Music. Stretch. Talk. Play. Color. Journal. Count. Forgive. Draw. Dance. Breathe. Meditate. Movie. Read. Pretzel. [...]
I Hit A Wall
Good morning... Queen Elizabeth II. Hurricane Fiona victims. Ukrainians and Russians killed in senseless war. Floods in central Italy. An earthquake in Taiwan. Wildfires blaze wildly out west. Gun violence steals lives across our nation. So many friends have recently lost loved ones to disease, to cancer, to addiction, to suicide, to overpowering riptide currents. It seems that death has been taking a really high toll. Prayerfully considering our collective grief, yesterday I [...]
Our Response To Mass Graves
Good morning... God set our new semester ablaze as we gathered to study one tiny book, Simple Faith by Margaret Silf. As we have seen the horrific images of the mass graves found in Ukraine this week, I have pondered one long sentence from our class reading. "She will learn to distinguish between those things in life - kindness, compassion, justice and truth - that are making her, and all of us, more [...]
Cords of Human Kindness
Good morning... "God leads us with cords of human kindness," says Hosea 11:4. The God Almighty uses people - weak, vulnerable, powerless people - to guide us with reigns made of love. I am reminded of the book bag tag given to each child at church before the start of the school year. Weak, vulnerable, powerless kids can tangibly spread kindness each day. We adults - weak, vulnerable, powerless adults - [...]
Suck. Savor. Thirst. Grow.
Good morning... "When you pray, simply dwell on one line," she encouraged, "something like sucking on a candy rather than gobbling it up, or soaking in a bath rather than jumping in and out of the shower." I prayerfully dwell on one Bible verse. I led them with cords of human kindness, with ties of love. To them I was like one who lifts a little child to the cheek, and I bent [...]
When Change Is All Around You
Good morning... I texted her yesterday, "Kate Bowler's blessing is deeply yours today." ****** A blessing for when you're different now by Kate Bowler Blessed are you, dear one, when the world around you has changed. Everything is different now, your body, your age, your relationships, your job, your faith. The things that once brought you joy. The way you existed in the world. The people you love and trust and rely on. [...]
When Tragedy Visits Us
Good morning... As the sun set on Sunday, September 11th, 2022, one loyal subscriber sent a picture of God's presence off the coast of Oregon. On the very same night, God's living presence was captured in a different time zone by another reader. "My Sunday sunset view on a flight home to Florida," she shared this stunning photo. I think just as life-giving is God's presence saturating the cover art on [...]
Let Love Soak In
Good morning... "Sunset tonight as raindrops are falling on the lake," she texted on Sunday night from the coast of Oregon. "Sabbath blessings indeed!" "And then this happened," she witnessed God's WOW. "Power belongs to you, God, and with you, Lord, is unfailing love" (Psalm 62:11b-12:a, NIV). Such full bodied transformation reminds me of a quote I met this week. "I simply let myself be loved by God," says Peter van [...]
Being With Someone Who Is Gone
Good morning... Her son, Finn, was born on 9/11/04, three years after so many innocent people lost their lives on one horrible day. Finn himself died on 8/14/21, taking his own life. Sharing a poem yesterday, on would have been Finn's 18th birthday, this grieving mom embodies the art of being with someone who is gone. ****** A New Kind of Conversation by Rosemerry Wahtola Trommer It is possible to be with someone [...]
Steve Reflects On Loss
Good morning... My husband Steve has been a chaplain, teacher, and wrestling coach at The Lovett School since 1996 (minus his two year stint as a college chaplain in New Wilmington, Pennsylvania). Steve works primarily with the upper school students, and he enjoys a great bond with the middle and lower school chaplains. Together their team of three writes a chaplain's message every week. In his message from last Monday, Steve reflects on [...]