I love do-overs. If I don’t like what I’m writing, I hit the delete key and “do-over.” If my hair is having a bad day, my brush winds its way through and creates a “do-over.” If my chicken dish doesn’t turn out…well, I just throw that out. Wouldn’t it be freeing if we could “do-over” or throw out some of life’s moments that make us cringe? Pull the words back or stop ourselves from not-smart actions. Stupid decisions we made. Hurtful comments we shared. Hot pants worn. (What on earth were you thinking, girl?) None of us are Continue Reading
God is in This Moment
Where are you today? At home? At work? Shoveling? Walking the beach? Holding the hand of someone you love in the hospital room? In bed, wishing for the energy to get up? Pull in closer … there are some words of encouragement for you here. God is in every moment. Wherever you are, God is there. God is in this moment is a phrase I’m learning to whisper frequently throughout the day. Whether it’s a good moment or a horrible moment, God’s presence never leaves. He is there. I whispered it while I was out walking. Although the Continue Reading
Creating a Different Tomorrow
I’m standing in front of Steve as he’s trying to read (I’m obviously being very annoying), peering over the top of his book, trying to get my face in the brightest light from his reading lamp, as I describe what I think the lines on the sides of my chin look like: Like the face on puppets…no…marionettes…no… Like the face on the dummies that ventriloquists use. Yes. That’s it. The look on his face tells me he’s worried there may be a trick question coming soon, and that he needs to think carefully about his response. These lines Continue Reading
Into the Messiness…Jesus
Do you find it difficult to celebrate when you look around and see a lot of trouble and hard things? Yeah, me too. And then I remember … Jesus told us there would be trouble (John 16:33) and He told us that he came to earth to give us a full, abundant life (John 10:10). We live in the both/and. We celebrate this week because Jesus came to us—in all our messiness—to give us peace. Joy. Restoration. Forgiveness. A full life. The pain that comes with life on earth does not stand alone. It is not everything. As we work and pray for Continue Reading
When the Plates Spin
A short chapter in the Bible that grounds me and gets my heart, soul and mind back in synch with the Sacred, is Psalm 117. (It’s also an easy one to memorize.) Open your Bible and read the words out loud – maybe more than once. It will change how your day feels. “The faithfulness of the Lord endures forever.” (That includes today.) Here’s why those words matter … On some days the plates are neatly stacked. Orderly, uneventful. Other days they spin…furiously. Watching the twirling, feeling the frantic, makes me dizzy. The tiny life Continue Reading
Getting Settled
I had a weird dream the other night. But then, I usually do when God is working on my heart. I’m grateful for how He graciously shows me how and where my heart and my thinking need to change, even though the dreams can be quite unsettling during those night hours. My recent nighttime mind swirls remind me of a couple other dreams that I wrote about a few years ago. As I type this note, I am praying that if you are feeling unsettled, you will receive hope and comfort from The One Who Settles Us. Lean into His peace and His Continue Reading
The Messy Guest
This note is one of my very favorites. And it’s one that I love sharing with you. Why? Because we can all see ourselves in this situation. We’ve been there. And it brings a helpful reminder and heart-felt encouragement on how we can enjoy Thanksgiving even more. With people we care about. (If you’ve been part of our community for a while, your graciousness in reading some familiar words is appreciated!) I am so grateful that you choose to take a few minutes each week to read words that I have strung together. Your time and interest Continue Reading
Praying When Words are Hard
“The wonderful thing about praying is that you leave a world of not being able to do something, and enter God’s realm where everything is possible.” Corrie ten Boom One of the first prayers I learned was this: Now I lay me down to sleep, I pray the Lord my soul to keep. If I should die before I wake, I pray the Lord my soul to take. Amen. I’m grateful that I learned how to pray when I was real little, but … really? If I should die before I wake? That’s a pretty deep subject for a 3-year-old to be contemplating. Over the years Continue Reading
Hard Work vs Peaceful Trust
It is still my least favorite job in the history of the whole world. Standing in the back of dad’s 2-ton red truck during harvest, shoveling the grain down into the corners of the truck as fast as I could as it poured from our John Deere combine’s auger. It always seemed like it was 134˚ on those days. With no shade. And did I mention the crickets? Those horrible little creatures joined ugly old grasshoppers and took up considerable space in the back of that truck. And on me. They landed EVERYWHERE. No body part or piece of clothing Continue Reading
My Soft Place to Land
Ooftah. It was one of those nightmares that you just can’t wake up from. That night, my really bad dream didn’t include falling off cliffs, nor were people chasing me with chainsaws. This nightmare seemed more “every day.” In my nightmare that never seemed to end, I was at a conference in a very large convention center. I had gotten separated from my group, and I was frantically wandering hallways and stairwells to try and find someone I knew. My purse had been stolen along with my cell phone. I just could not get my bearings. To Continue Reading
Boldly and Bravely Breaking Rules
Oh. My. I just spent two wonderful days in Green Bay at the Known Women’s Conference. The speakers, the worship led by Ayiesha Woods, the welcoming environment, and the Holy Spirit’s movement through every detail – it was beautiful. Such a joy to be with them. As I drove home to St. Paul, I kept thinking about all the details and logistics that worked to make it a comfortable, faith-filled place for women. AND I considered the strength and courage it took for Joyel Vandenboogart to envision this weekend and bring it to life for 500 Continue Reading
God is Greater Than our Needs
“I don’t want to look back on my life – my beautiful, wonder-filled, God-given life – and realize that I’ve mostly missed it while I was busy preparing for the worst.” I read those words and whispered out loud, Oh, Lord. Yes. So true. The awareness of what I could miss, and the hope in what I could experience, took my breath away. (Susie Larson included those words by Nicole Zasowski in her new book “Closer Than Your Next Breath: Where is God When You Need Him Most?” Oh, what a hope-filled book for these days!) You and I have Continue Reading
Today I Choose My Always
Change has always felt like a colorful invitation to something new – which offers possibilities. Adventures. New dreams and ideas. Something different. At least that’s how it usually feels in my world. In My Guy Steve’s world? Not so much. Change is … well, change. And perhaps a root canal seems more inviting. There isn’t a need for different when what’s working now is working now. No matter your preference for different, I bet you’re feeling a shift in your own world these days. Schedules change so our rhythms need to change. The Continue Reading
Make Room for the Moments
A personal reflection for you today … “Life is made up of moments, small pieces of glittering mica in a long stretch of gray cement. It would be wonderful if they came to us unsummoned, but particularly in lives as busy as the ones most of us lead now, that won’t happen. We have to teach ourselves how to make room for them, to love them, and to live, really live.” (Emphasis mine.) Anna Quindlen wrote those words in “A Short Guide to a Happy Life.” This very short book is a gift to anyone wanting to live a full, rich life. Her words Continue Reading
Wondering What’s Next?
There are a few things I wonder about. (Actually, more than a few things, but space is limited here, and I don’t want to bore you with too many trivial “I wonders.”) Do you remember Pa from Little House on the Prairie (AKA Michael Landon, AKA Cutie-Patootie)? Why did his hair never get messed up? And why were his pants never wrinkled or dirty? What do you do with the little pieces of chips at the bottom of the chip bag? You can’t dip them in salsa, and you can’t melt cheese on them. Why can’t I be awake when I sleep so I can know Continue Reading
Writing Your Memoir
I love to read. And memoirs are at the top of my list. My favorites are typically written by a not-so-young woman whose story reads something like this... Her life was filled with hope-filled dreams. Exciting expectations. Blue skies and sun-filled days. She had energy that made skipping in her summer slip-ons easy-peasy. Then life happened. Her skies got cloudy. Disappointment replaced those dreams. Skipping was totally out of the question. She just didn’t have the energy. The next section in her memoir shares a season in her Continue Reading
Just Pack the Lunch
She just packed the lunch. If we’ve been friends here for a while, you may have picked up on this fact: I do not like to cook. Cooking is a stressor that causes my neck to blotch, my face to turn crimson, and the tears to fall. (Actually, they gush.) So. Every single time I read the story of Jesus feeding 5,000+ people, I am stunned. I mean, really. Stunned. Cooking for one sends me into overwhelm. Here’s a recap (Matthew 14:13-21): Jesus had spent the day healing crowds of people. The Bible says he “had compassion on them,” Continue Reading
A Good Summer Plan
This little note is one of my favorites – an oldie but goodie! It says exactly what’s on my heart this week. Blessings on your summer days, my friend. I’m so grateful for our connection here! It’s summer, and that means the heat index could be maxed out so everything is wilting, or it could be raining cats and dogs with thunder and lightning thrown into the mix. (I wonder who came up with the phrase raining cats and dogs. What does it even mean? OK. Back to our regularly scheduled program.) Just for a moment, let’s imagine that it’s Continue Reading
Too Old? I Think Not.
The podcast host was interviewing a young author about her new book. I was casually listening while driving to the store, wondering if this author’s book would be a new reason for Amazon Prime to come to our home. But then I experienced a “You’ve got to be kidding me!” moment while completely forgetting about her book. The young woman being interviewed was talking about her high school experience — 15 years earlier. Did you catch that? She was in high school 15 years ago. She coyly remarked, “That was when I was young! Let’s not talk Continue Reading
Don’t Give Up. Have Faith.
I wonder what kept some of our faith heroes from rolling their eyes at God. Like when God told Noah, “So make yourself an ark...” I think I would have muttered a quick, “Wait. What? You’ve got to be kidding me.” But “Noah did everything just as God commanded him.” And when God appeared to Abram, who with his wife Sarai so badly wanted a child. God told him to “Look toward heaven, and number the stars, if you are able to number them...So shall your offspring be.” (Abram was 99 years old; Sarai was 90.) I think I may have laughed Continue Reading
It’s Time to Dance
This is for you. If your perfect evening out is a gathering of dozens of friends who are all your bestie, where no one worries about how late it is, and you get absolutely giddy about the chance to engage in several conversations at the same time because, you know, there’s so much to talk about … this note is for you. And if your perfect evening out is gathering with a few close friends to catch up and laugh, where small talk quickly turns to heart-felt conversations … I’ve got you covered. And, of course, if you’re somewhere in Continue Reading
My Anchor Holds
I know that God is faithful. He is loving. Gracious. I know that He promises me peace. And, there are still some days when swirling comes knocking and I open the door, invite her in, and offer her a place to hang out. My swirling looks like this … I wander around the house. Aimlessly. Up and down, room to room, opening and closing the fridge door, flipping through books, scrolling through my phone. There is work to be done, but my mind doesn’t get focused. My thoughts feel like the little steel ball that flies around a pinball Continue Reading
God Always Has Time for You
Ok. Let's review. (She says to herself first.) Here are phrases that do not show up in The Good Book… These words were never said by your Heavenly Father, The Great Promise Keeper... You've got a big load of stuff to do today. Good luck with that. You always mess up. Can't you just get your act together? You've been struggling with that situation for years. It's not going to change. It's never going to end, you know. Bad stuff happens. This is just a really bad day. And you haven't even gotten out of bed. Why keep Continue Reading
In a Rut? Try Something New
Tired and gloomy are horrible roommates. They should not be permitted to settle in our hearts, hang curtains, and make themselves at home. Here’s the deal … It’s the middle of March and we Minnesotans are expecting yet another blizzard, with wind that whips sideways, icy streets, and temperatures that are … cold. Really, really cold. During the days that feel gloomy and life feels harder, it’s easy to start to feel listless. Tired. And when we feel listless and tired, it’s easy to get into a rut. We become very comfortable doing Continue Reading
Yay for You! Celebrate!
Walking out of the grocery store, I passed a gentleman wearing a dark t-shirt, with big, white bold letters across the front that said … I pooped. For real. That’s all it said. Couldn’t have missed those two words if I’d tried. Whatever prompted a middle-aged man to go to the store or shop online and buy a t-shirt with those words plastered across the front and then wear it in public? I kept thinking about it as I drove out of the store’s parking lot, because … seriously. How can you not think about it? We know that after Continue Reading
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