I remember the whitewashed lettering painted across the red barn - Peace on Earth. Each December a towering star lit the way for the message to sink into the hearts of all who traveled the country road. In the darkness of the winter sky, one couldn’t help but ponder the way of peace. Decades later, the elusiveness of peace still surrounds the season, now more than ever. When the world is still spinning in the uncertainty of COVID variants, rising inflation, and political tensions, peace is a much sought-after commodity. We've found ourselves wrestling with more than was ever expected, and although we've acquired a greater appreciation for family time, self-care, and work/life balance, we're still left grappling with the residue of 2021 and the stress of busily making the most of the Continue Reading
Friendsgiving with Fresh Market Friday Link-Up + Free Gift
This week, I realized I am once again late to the party - the Friendsgiving party. It seems this festivity has been rapidly gaining popularity in our culture, and although I was initially among those so-called skeptics who surmised this was one more opportunity to remove God from the season, I soon came to realize it can easily be considered an extension of Thanksgiving. Friends are such a valuable and necessary part of life, and the gift of friendship is a rich blessing to treasure and offer up gratitude for. "Make new friends but keep the old; one is silver and the other is gold." For many years, a picture with these words hung on the wall, welcoming friends to our home. I'm not sure who authored this quote, but it's long been a favorite. Opportunities for friendship have Continue Reading
Our Longing Is His Gift
Last week, there was such an outpouring and common interest in accessing the gift of stillness, particularly when faced with the hard circumstances of life. I described a bit of my own struggle with surrendering to the quiet calm. But there's something more. There's a rich gift waiting for us on the edge of stillness...presence. We were created for presence. We were fashioned out of a desire for fellowship and companionship. We're designed to inhabit and occupy and be. Yet, too often the very gift of presence is only treasured when it no longer exists. How do we practice being, and how do we get to the place of complete contentment? I think the answer lies in learning to embrace the presence of God in our life...in all of our life. And the more we seek out those moments, the Continue Reading
We are Made for Brave When Life is Hard
Sometimes life is hard. Pain comes. Grief, betrayal, suffering, and sickness are all a part of living in today's world. Sometimes putting on a brave face and moving forward is the last thing that we want to do. When my boys were young, I left my job at a Fortune 2 company to stay home with them. I left a high paid consultancy, my suits, stimulating adult conversations and corporate lunches behind for diaper changes, snotty noses, endless food prep, and messes. Transitioning from full-time employment outside of the house to being home full-time with babies and toddlers is hard. And because I am a glutton for punishment, shortly after returning home, I decided to homeschool my boys. In the best of circumstances, homeschooling is hard. Flash forward, and I had three boys: one in Continue Reading