Helping Others Flourish
I learn of a beautiful interpretation of The Lord’s Prayer on TikTok from a user (@stormyc_spirit) who I imagine differs greatly from me theologically. While this might seem New Age and not something you’re comfortable with, I still loved the wording. I wrote down his interpretation in my journal. He prays to God: Carve out […]
Exceedingly Multiplied
I noticed today in the book of Genesis the words that accompany God’s blessing. When God blesses, we see the words “exceedingly fruitful” and “multiply greatly” (Genesis 17). God’s blessing meant people became exceedingly fruitful and that their offspring and influence were greatly multiplied. I kept thinking about asking God to bless that which we […]
Up and Down
I’m so thankful the Lord is unchanging since recovering from COVID is up and down. God stays faithful and constant even if our experience of Him changes. We know we can expect of His love and care. But with COVID you can’t predict anything and you don’t know what to expect. I remembered that today […]
The Support You Need
I’ve been thinking a lot about the various kinds of support a person needs in order to thrive. I felt overwhelmed with the social support of the last week and all the meals and kind messages. I loved the intellectual support of my wise medical friends. I loved the spiritual support of prayers and time […]
When It’s Harder to Count Your Blessings
My neighbor and I discussed the difficulty of counting your blessings when you’re in a hard season of life. Since we’re both exceedingly positive people, you know things are rough if even we have a hard time finding the good. I love keeping the gratitude journal for such a time as this. When it’s especially […]
A Day Off and a Reset
I didn’t write yesterday. I took a day off, and it reminded that living with flair means it’s always a good practice to reset. Enduring a bad case of COVID feels like a whole-body reset. I’ve done nothing but hydrate, take vitamins, and eat to support my health. Now, I’m reset. I pray for the […]
“The day you feel better is the day you stay in bed.”
I woke up this morning and felt a little better. I started to think of things I might do. But I immediately remembered the words of Nurse Karen from Camp Greystone during the summer of 1998 when I had some kind of intestinal virus. I stayed in the Health Hut for a week! I couldn’t […]
As If Sent
Let me state the irony: I wrote a whole book on living a sent life as if applies to me. I’m always praying that God would send me. I didn’t expect to be the recipient of God sending you. It started this morning when I was worried about what to actually do about Covid. We […]
Enduring Covid
My family tested positive for Covid this week. It isn’t easy. It’s probably the worst virus I’ve ever had (except for the Norovirus back in 2010 that lasted 14 days). In our case, we’ve been in bed or on the couch since Saturday night. In the spirit of documenting our family trial, I will report […]
Do This First
Right as July turns to August, I feel the rush of a new semester starting. Speaking events, radio interviews, podcasts, university meetings, manuscript deadlines–all of it. This list doesn’t include the regular tasks of keeping a home, organizing family events, and spending time with people. This list doesn’t include meal-planning and cooking which can take […]