Where is Your Focus?
I asked God for a word that would help me accomplish His plans for me in 2020. The word, Focus, came to me, oddly enough, during the Total Strength class at the YMCA.
Helping Women Move From Fear into Faith
Tag: embracing the moments
Prayer for a New Year
I find myself still wandering around in the old year working on the lessons begun there. I’m not as excited about a new year as I usually am. I want to be dazzled by the new number and the new decade but it hasn’t hit me yet.
So I come to you Lord, humbly, again offering myself completely to you. I don’t have it all together, but this is what I do know: You are my everything. I fervently long for your will to be done in my life so that I will bring you glory in this bright and shiny New Year.
Tips For a Perfectly Imperfect Christmas
I would speed through it all and finally sit down to enjoy our decorated fresh fir… after the holidays. I was overwhelmed with sadness when I realized I’d missed some priceless moments that were gone forever.
Somewhat Simple Soup Supper
I don’t want to carry gratitude around in seasons.
I want to carry it in my bones,
I want to rest it in on my tongue
like it is a language
that I never stop speaking.
~Arielle Estoria
How an Open Door of Hospitality Changed My Life, 1st draft
WE are Christ’s Body—His hands and feet. We are the ones with doors and tables and food that encourage other folks around us.
What I’m Learning About Love
Look into her/his face. Smile big. Say good morning in my happiest voice. If she/he starts a conversation, listen intently and make a kind reply. Repeat…
Magical Friendship
It felt good just to hear myself say the words and to hear her listening. She went on to tell me about a difficult situation she and her husband have been navigating with a third party. Immediately the magic happened again. We were entering into each others’ lives and caring and responding. It helped me to get my mind off of myself; pray again for her and also feel relieved of my sad feelings.
Finding Me
I realized today when I tossed those pillows on the swing that the way I’m wired hasn’t curled up and died. My gifts for gathering people and warming up our home so people will feel loved and welcomed. This is who I am. I just haven’t known how to be that person in a different place.
Dear Married Ladies, Your Marriage is Worth Fighting For
This week I read about a 100 year old woman who’s shared 82 years of marriage with her husband who’s 103. When asked their secret she offered, “Just be nice to each other.”
Old
I’m all for the first amendment; free speech and all. But what is to be done to a word that is both ambiguous and possibly hurtful? I’m thinking of the word old.
How to Curate Your Life
“No one else can play your part.”
Better a Neighbor Nearby
“Better a neighbor nearby than a relative far away.”
It’s been nearly a year now since Shari invited all the neighbor ladies over for a party at her home. A party to say goodbye to me. I wasn’t the only one in tears that night. Honestly I was crying a lot last year. I didn’t want to move from our home or our neighborhood. But we knew God was pointing us in the direction of South Carolina, after a job offer had been made.