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Embracing the Lonely Seasons
Alone. Most of us cringe just seeing the word by itself on the page. We may welcome alone time for a few hours. We may seek out a solitary retreat. But few of us relish being alone for long periods of time. Even worse, that lonely ache you feel in a crowd. You might be surrounded by others at a gathering. You might put on a smile at the party. You may even lift your hands in worship at church. And yet you feel painfully alone. Like it or not, most of us will go through seasons when we feel alone. The ache of loneliness will tug at our soul…
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Running the Race of Life
As Thanksgiving approaches, many of us are gearing up for our favorite running day of the year. Even non-runners love the annual Turkey Trot where young and old alike jog in anticipation of the great feast ahead. Then you can eat all the turkey dinner you want AND have a second helping of dessert guilt-free. Okay, maybe that last part is just my tradition. Unfortunately, I can’t run this year due to a back injury. Doctor’s orders. As I’ve lamented and longed to run again, a new picture has emerged: Life as a race with hurdles and PR’s (personal records). Scripture says: “Since we are surrounded by such a great…
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Scrambled Souls and SILENCE – An Accessible Addiction
Eleven years ago this fall I was invited to go on a “silent retreat”, the kind where you literally do not speak during the time period for silence. This particular one was for 36 hours. Some of my friends were incredulous. “How can a group of women be silent for that long, for any amount of time?” One of my relatives emailed me and asked, “Just what does one do on a silent retreat, like – what’s the purpose?” One colleague even ventured to look at me as if to say, “YOU, silent?” Until this first silent retreat I had not experienced the phenomenon of stopping to enter into silence…