As Holy Week moves toward a well-known bittersweet ending of grief and anguish in the Garden of Gethsemane, my heart ponders what the wait meant to Jesus and His three closest disciples. Asking a simple question of John, James, and Peter, “Will you wait with me?” Jesus moves deeper into the garden for His last encounter with His Father before…
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Will You Wait with Me?
Love’s Invitation May Shock You
“I love you because you are my daughter, but I don’t like you as a person.” These words spoken over me as a teen defined my view of how others loved me for many years. In fact, they defined how I viewed God’s love for me. That is until Love’s invitation shattered my preconception. Like no other, God’s invitation of…
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A Lenten Journey of Love
When asked to describe Lent in one word, the only word which came to mind was Love. While most people think of Lent as a sad time of repentance, fasting, and a journey to the Cross, my mind sees a Lenten journey of Love. What singular emotion could have motivated Jesus Christ to not only journey to the Cross, but…
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The Movement of Rest
For the longest time contemplating the movement of rest simply failed to make sense to me. Encountering a quote mentioning the concept, my mind labored in reconciling movement with rest. Yet a myopic view of rest implying a complete cessation of movement kept me stuck searching for a flawed image of rest. In my journey to the Cross this Lenten…
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How Repentance Brings Deep Rest
Following the Lord’s lead into a time of rest during this Lenten season, my heart feels free to draw near to the Throne of Grace. To my dismay, God is inviting me into a place of repentance. No easy task, but the work of true repentance brings deep rest to the Christian. Lent offers a time for spiritual recalibration, which…
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When the Music Stops
Embarking on another season of Lent reminds me of God’s invitation to a slower pace; even a time of rest. Yet, as at other times when the music of my life stops, a certain restlessness moves in. As if the rest somehow is misplaced. Invitations to rest from the daily routines surface much like musical rests, full of purpose, but…
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When Love Takes You by Surprise
Yes, it’s that day. Valentine’s Day. Not my favorite day for many reasons, but it does force a few thoughts on loving well. At times, love takes you by surprise, but for the most part love’s most powerful expressions come in the daily experiences of life. Speaking His unfailing love into my heart for the past year in unique ways,…
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Finding Joy in a Hedge of Trials
Do you ever grow weary with people trying to cheer you up as you walk a crippling path of grief? A rather pointed question, I mused quietly, listening to a woman share her frustration with “well-meaning” friends. No matter the source of your grief, when you walk a hard path, finding joy in a hedge of trials, seems much like…
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3 Things God Will Not Do for You in Suffering
Though part of the Christian walk, suffering is one facet we avoid cultivating as we do other spiritual disciplines. Partly because suffering for the Christian comes designed or permitted by God. Even in the self-inflicted suffering relative to the consequences of sinful choices, both our own and others, God remains sovereign over our suffering. Yet there remains 3 things God…
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