Good Morning…

Strangely, as I have felt more settled in the life of God’s choosing, I have also felt more frightened. I am afraid that the sacred cycle of life will force me again to forfeit the abundance I currently enjoy. A death to one dear to me. A dreaded diagnosis. Another descent into the darkness of depression. Honestly, as my life in Atlanta blossoms and flourishes, so does my fear of being reduced back to a stump again. 

That is why the panoramic perspective of our seasonal lives is helping my trust to grow stronger than my fears, just like my faraway friend noticed (see past three posts). Following nature’s cyclical seasons, I know that a winter experience of bearing bare branches will happen again to me. The thought of being pruned back to my core by life frightens me more as I fall deeper in love with my new normal.

Parker Palmer speaks directly into face of my fear. “Ones inward winters take many forms – failure, betrayal, depression, death. But every one of them, in my experience, yields the same advice: ‘The winters will drive you crazy until you learn to get out in them.’ Until we enter boldly into the fears we most want to avoid, those fears will dominate our lives. But when we walk directly into them – protected from frostbite by the warm garb of friendship or inner discipline or spiritual guidance – we can learn what they have to teach us. Then we discover once again that the cycle of the seasons is trustworthy and life-giving, even in the most dismaying season of all.” (Let Your Life Speak, 102-103)

After this semester of studying together Let Your Life Speak, I find myself trusting more in God’s organic ways: He cuts off every branch of mine that doesn’t produce fruit, and he prunes the branches that do bear fruit so they will produce even more (John 15:2, NLT). As my fear shrinks and my trust in the LORD grows, this subtle, internal shift sends healing properties out to everyone nearby. With God’s help I am just beginning to embody the blessing of Proverbs 31:25 (NLT): She is clothed with strength and dignity, and she laughs without fear of the future.

…Sue…