Give ear to my words, O Lord, consider my sighing. Listen to my cry for help, my King and my God, for to you I pray. In the morning, O Lord, you hear my voice; in the morning I lay my requests before you and wait in expectation. Psalm 5:1-3 Prayer is being heard by God. Prayer is based on the amazing reality that God hears us. God hears our words. God hears our hearts. As the psalmist says, God … [Read more...] about Being Heard by God as Prayer
Being Seen by God as Prayer
She gave this name to the Lord who spoke to her, You are the God who sees me, for she said, I have now seen the One who sees me. Genesis 16:13 This prayer, recorded in Genesis 16, is the prayer of Hagar, the Egyptian servant of Abraham and Sarah. Years after God had promised Abraham and Sarah children, and no children had come, they took it upon themselves to “build a family through” this … [Read more...] about Being Seen by God as Prayer
Prayer in a Pandemic
Hello dear ones. We, as a world wide community, are experiencing an extraordinary moment together. I hope you are safely sheltered in place. I pray that you are finding some peace in the midst of the fears, patience in the midst of the waiting and comfort in the midst of the grief. I will be posting over the next many months from my book An Enduring Embrace: Discovering the Love at the Heart … [Read more...] about Prayer in a Pandemic
Be Who You Are
Whoever loses his life for my sake will find it. Matthew 10:39 One day while driving along a familiar road, I found myself accelerating through a yellow light. Everyone behind me had to stop, and I felt for an instant that I had “won.” It was as if we had all been racing and I had just pulled ahead and beat everyone. I enjoyed my small victory. But my pride didn’t last long. In order to … [Read more...] about Be Who You Are
Express Gratitude
Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good; his love endures forever. Psalm 107:1 Every year just before or after New Year’s Day my husband and I plan a special date. We go out to lunch or dinner and sit together for some time compiling a gratitude list for the year that is about to end. We have been doing this for more than a decade. Typically we end up with a list of seventy to eighty items … [Read more...] about Express Gratitude
Grieve
Blessed are those who mourn for they will be comforted. Matthew 5.4 I was first introduced to the term “grief work” as a nursing student in my early twenties. I knew nothing about grief. The religious culture in which I had been raised didn’t grieve much. At least not that I ever saw. Our preachers sometimes said things at funerals that would stun the average person. Things like, “This is … [Read more...] about Grieve
Acknowledge Death
Teach us to number our days aright, that we may gain a heart of wisdom. Psalm 90:12 Life is full of loss. There are little losses and big losses. Ultimately, no matter how hard we try to stave it off, death itself will come to us and to those we love. Whenever we are faced with any difficulty, it is likely to have woven into it the fear of some kind of loss, some kind of death. I soon … [Read more...] about Acknowledge Death
