Anxiety Buster: Time to Think

How do you spend/invest your time? Who do you spend your time with? Do you have any guilt over your answers? I think our personality types play into how we answer these questions. For me, as an INFJ, I struggle with what I have to do versus what I need to do. In my list...

Speaking your truth

In my research into hypothyroidism, I came across the Hindu teachings about chakras. To be clear, I don't ascribe to Hinduism but my interest was piqued by their belief that thryoid issues were due in part to not using your voice. Acquiescing to others when you know you shouldn't; staying silent instead of speaking up;...

Pink Glasses of Hope

"Honor your own pace. "Walk, don't run." Recovery doesn't care about your ambition, only on your current ability. Mental illness is trauma and trauma takes time to heal."             Sam Dylan Finch The problem with knowing the basics of something, is forming assumptions about how long it should take to master...

Renewed: Day 37, Having a Voice

"When we remain silent or refuse to use our gifts, we hamper the body of Christ from achieving its fullness. God places members in the body of Christ to bring it to health, and we are part of the body. Our voices and gifts matter." (Renewed, Leigh Powers, pg 155) I am passionate about people...

Renewed: Day 35/40, Angry Dragons / Wounded Sheep

"I'm not saying that we should put up with sheer meanness or verbal abuse. There are times when we need to lovingly confront others about their sin. Sometimes we need to draw boundaries such as refusing to remain in a disrespectful conversation." (Renewed, Leigh Powers, pg 146) After my last post, I'm relieved that Powers...

Renewed: Day 34, Honoring Others

"There are times when we must honor people who will never honor us back. Like David, we may be tempted to strike out and give as we have been given. We may even be surrounded by our own chorus of friends egging us on. But Christ gives us a higher calling. The people around us...

Renewed: Day 32, Redemption

"...those lessons were costly. And the church - have they learned anything from this? Or will they repeat the same process with another pastor two years down the road: hope, disillusionment, blame, conflict, gone? It's out of my hands now.  God, I want to believe nothing is wasted with you. But what was the purpose...

Renewed: Day 31, Giving our hearts back to God

I am nearing the end of this project - writing along with reading through this book; processing through as we neared the end of our last church and entered the interim wilderness. Has it been helpful? I'm still considering that as past hurts were unearthed and re-examined simultaneously with the stress of the current ministry...

Renewed: Day 27,Worship

"...when I've spent the week weeping over the broken relationships and strife we seem unable to overcome, on Sunday mornings it's hard to worship." (Renewed, Leigh Powers, pg 111) This describes my battle most Sundays since September of last year. Once you know that your congregation has people in it who don't want your husband...

Resting

This past Autumn, a few of us at our church prayer meeting were given similar thoughts on the need for healing in our church and community. We weren't sure what it all looked like, but my pastor-husband began to research different options and we all began to pray about it. This week, we are holding...