Good morning... I woke to a short, intriguing email from my 22 year old son. He wrote: "Interesting 8 minute audio clip, 'What's the Last Thing You Would Tweet?' Curious what you think about it, and what your final 140 character message might be." I touched on the link and read through John Piper's thought process as he decided [...]
Good morning... As she cut my hair, I read the tattoo on the underside of her left arm: “The happiest girls are the prettiest,” says the tattoo on the underside of her left arm. I thought to myself, “That statement is actually quite biblical.” Proverbs 15:13a (NLT) says simply: “A glad heart makes a happy face.” The second half [...]
Good morning... “I try to be slow to respond and quick to think,” says beloved author and human behavior researcher Brene Brown. “I also stay very mindful about the effect that calm has on an anxious person or situation. A panicked response produces more panic and more fear. As psychologist and writer Harriet Lerner says, ‘Anxiety is extremely contagious, [...]
Good morning... It was not until the final week of class that I understood exactly why God had chosen The Book of Hygge for our Moms of Lovett Seniors Study. (Find the first words in the book quoted in yesterday’s post, Hygge: God’s Remedy.) Once we hosted our Awake To Wellness Women’s Retreat, a fresh insight dawned on me. [...]
Good morning... Always looking for the next book to teach, I mostly chose one book because it was short and simple, it had intriguing quotes and soulful pictures, and it was on the sale table at a local, eclectic store. I fell in love with the first words of the introduction: “Hygge (pronounced “hoo-gah”) is a quality of presence [...]
Good morning... “Stillness is not about focussing on nothingness; it’s about creating a clearing. It’s opening up an emotionally clutter-free space and allowing ourselves to feel and think and dream and question,” writes author Brene Brown on page 108 of The Gifts of Imperfection. Stillness. Create a clearing. Open up emotionally. Protect clutter-free inner space. Allow feeling, thinking, dreaming, [...]
Good morning... I am deeply grateful pianist Dana Cunningham sent us another one of the poems she read aloud to us at our Awake To Wellness Women’s Retreat. In the nest of right now, create a clutter-free inner space for William’s words to resonate in your soul. ****** You Reading This, Be Ready by William Stafford You Reading This, [...]
Good morning... Extremely grateful, I thanked store owner, Lisa, at The Front Porch of Vining for sharing with us a combination of donated and purchased items from her new fresh market for our recent retreat. Two large flower arrangements with an adorable one thrown in. Local pies and yummy pecans. Gift basket and a "Happy Spring" display. Chocolates and cheese [...]
Good morning... “I must die like a kernel of wheat that falls into the furrows of the earth,” says our friend Jesus in John 12:24, (TLB). “Unless I die, I will be alone, a single seed. But my death will produce many new wheat kernels - a plentiful harvest of new lives.” Seeking to fend off death, we want [...]
Good morning... As I sit on my back porch at this time of the year, I see the color of new growth bursting on bare branches. Now and forever, I will call this light, bright color “Julie Green.” One year ago today, 42-year-old Julie Harlan died, a loving wife and mother, a loyal daughter and sister, a long-time friend [...]
