A Pantry for my Soul

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A Pantry for my Soul

Are you in the midst of a long stretch of life when you feel like you have nothing? It has been survival day after day. Maybe you are a mother of multiple preschoolers; a person in chronic pain; a cancer patient going through chemo; a husband or wife, a son or daughter, a sister or brother grieving the sudden death of your loved one; or maybe a caregiver of some kind. You don't have enough time or energy or mental clarity to replenish your own resources…

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"Where is the Holy Spirit in all of this?"

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"Where is the Holy Spirit in all of this?"

A mature young Christian woman goes to her regular adult Bible study class. The teachers of the class  are experts in Biblical counseling. Week by week they share from the Scriptures answers to common problems faced by individuals and families in today's culture. One Sunday after learning the "formula" for solving a particular problem biblically, our mature young woman asks, "But where is the Holy Spirit in all of this?" 

A member of a sound evangelical church is a student in a class on Christian church history.  He reads some articles ... 

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Read My Mail: Clues to Getting Free of Legalistic Living

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Read My Mail: Clues to Getting Free of Legalistic Living

For the past five years, I have been leading a small group of maturing sisters in the Lord. We call ourselves “Branches,” from the metaphor Jesus uses of Himself and His people in the gospel of John, chapter 15 — “I am the Vine; you are the branches.”

Our unifying theme is “living from our union with Christ.” We all long to understand and experience the freedom and fullness of our indwelling Lord Jesus through His Holy Spirit living in us and through us as us. And so we study and share and pray with and for each other.

In the course of our meetings and discussions, I was moved to write the following email. Maybe you would like to “eavesdrop” and read our mail. Feel free to jump in and respond. We can learn from each other.

Also be sure to check out our reading list and related blogs.

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Growing Old with the Ancient of Days

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Growing Old with the Ancient of Days

For some reason, I’m feeling my age this year.

Up to this point, I hadn’t felt old… I have just felt “me” — a little slower, a little more forgetful, a little more “invisible” to those around me. But just an older “me.”

Maybe it’s been my multiple bouts of pneumonia OR maybe it’s my believing the enemy’s lie “you’re too old to ______” ( I’ll share my thoughts on that in a coming post).

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The Glory of Being "Babci" -- a Polish Grandma

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The Glory of Being "Babci" -- a Polish Grandma

I come from a long line of Polish grandmothers — incredible women who sacrificed and loved and put their “babies” ahead of themselves.

My Babci came over to the US on a boat at the age of 15 by herself from Poland through Ellis Island. Her mom (my “Great-Babci”) began to send her kids one by one out of Poland to the US before WWI. She could see the conflict brewing….

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In the Meantime: Sunrises say "Glory" in Scripture and Song

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In the Meantime: Sunrises say "Glory" in Scripture and Song

Reflections from Past Sunrises beginning August 2014

The heavens proclaim the glory of God.    The skies display his craftsmanship.Day after day they continue to speak;    night after night they make him known.They speak without a sound or word;    their voice is never heard.Yet their message has gone throughout the earth,    and their words to all the world.God has made a home in the heavens for the sun.It bursts forth like a radiant bridegroom after his wedding.  

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This "Branch" is going "Down the Shore" Again

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This "Branch" is going "Down the Shore" Again

From my very first year of blogging and many years since, I’ve been blogging my journeys to my “happy place”…the Jersey Shore.

A portion of this blogpost is a trip into yesteryear —one of my early Jersey shore blogs, Aug 2016.

And actually in a couple days, we will again be on our way to that favorite place on earth for me. It’s not just the ocean that calls me. It’s my roots — the precious loved ones (family and friends) and memories of my growing up years. So off we go for another adventure…

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Never Too Young, Never Too Old

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Never Too Young, Never Too Old

You are never too young…
you are never too old…
… to be the expression of the life of God
in you and through you as you.

I have a precious granddaughter. Her name is Claire. Claire has been falling in love with God for years now. When she was about 4 years old, she asked me one day,
”Babci [my Polish name for G’ma], who told you about God.”

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A Blessing for Aging ... Trusting and Flourishing

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A Blessing for Aging ... Trusting and Flourishing

Aging is hard. When we are young, aged people are often “invisible.” Life is so busy for parents of growing families, adults who are building careers, even middle aged people who are young enough to travel and serve. They all have “big, busy lives.”

As we get older, our lives can get smaller. Our capacity shrinks and much of our time, attention, and energies are absorbed by health issues. Life gets hard and can feel hopeless.

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Turning 78: Growing Old with the Ancient of Days

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Turning 78: Growing Old with the Ancient of Days

For some reason, I’m feeling my age this year.

Up to this point, I hadn’t felt old… I have just felt “me” — a little slower, a little more forgetful, a little more “invisible” to those around me. But just an older “me.”

Maybe it’s been my multiple bouts of pneumonia OR maybe it’s my believing the enemy’s lie “you’re too old to ______” ( I’ll share my thoughts on that in a coming post).

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[New Post] My "Under Stress Mantra" Transforms My Every Day

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[New Post] My "Under Stress Mantra" Transforms My Every Day

… In the midst of my first bout, I had already been scheduled at my church to share my journey with Jesus. My “Stones of Remembrance” (as I called it) was designed as an activity for ladies to think through and begin to journal their own journey with God.

I got the OK from my doc to do the meeting if I felt up to it. I did feel up to it. I was prepared. My only concern was would my voice and body and energy last. So as I sat with my Abba early in the day of the presentation, He gave me my mantra, which I live …

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[New Post] Mottos and Mantras: Words of Wisdom Over the Years

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[New Post] Mottos and Mantras: Words of Wisdom Over the Years

This past winter, I spent almost three months hibernating in-between bouts of pneumonia. Lots of time to clean out my extras and get rid of many “unnessaries.”

In the course of it all, I pulled out an over-large storage container filled with my old notebook-journals. They date back from the 1970’s to the present. These gems and mundane thoughts are from years of recording into whatever notebook was at hand at the time.

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Mentoring at its Best: Attachment that Detaches

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Mentoring at its Best: Attachment that Detaches

Several years ago, I had an interesting conversation with a friend about mentoring. We marveled at how so many Christians we know, who have matured in the Lord through the help of a mentor, end up being rejected by that same mentor for not agreeing with them on minor points of doctrine or practice, or for moving on in a different direction in ministry, or for some other difference of opinion. How sad. But how common!

Well, there is good news! There is a gem of a spiritual father tucked away in the gospels, one of my heroes of the faith, John the Baptist!  He shows us what a true mentor is like. John is not only a clear example of "letting go," but also a stellar model of attachment to his Lord Jesus Christ.

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Called to Be Spiritual Fathers/Mothers

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Called to Be Spiritual Fathers/Mothers

If we are followers of our Lord Jesus Christ, siblings in the family of God, we are called to mature into “spiritual fatherhood/motherhood” in the family.

Is that a surprising thought? Let's think together about this idea of "spiritual parenting."

In his first letter, the fatherly, aged apostle John penned a tenderhearted passage on the growth stages in a believer's life.

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