Twinkle-less(1 minute, 30 seconds) I was listening to a young friend whose suffering is invisible. Her battle is constant, and her pain runs deep. She confided in me that her friends are stepping back, bowing out, and distant as she has tumbled deeper into dark…

2/28/20221 minute, 54 seconds Missionary Jim Elliot once said, “Wherever you are, be all there.”I learned this lesson many years ago, tumbling down a staircase with my baby girl in one arm, my cell phone in the other, mid-conversation with my director. Other than an…

Temporary Sojourning12-23-21(1 minute, 45 seconds) This Christmas is the third year in a row that we are living in a different house. Though profoundly grateful to be settled again, I feel the burden of sojourning keenly.With or without changing your address regularly, you probably know…

A Sacred, Slow Unwrapping(1 minute 58 seconds) It is a real thing to love giving and getting gifts.My sister-in-law taught me 29 years ago about love languages and that “gifts” is one of them. This is a language that I understand.To me, a lovely silk…

Resolve to Rejoice11-19-21 (2 minutes, 11 seconds) Hands down, my favorite holiday is Thanksgiving. One family tradition that I especially treasure is right before pie-feasting when we each create our sheet of thanks. Family and guests alike at our Thanksgiving table are given a blank…

October 27, 2021(2 minutes, 13 seconds) At nine years old, with burns on 100 percent of his small body, John O’Leary nearly died. In his riveting and inspiring book, On Fire, John shockingly says as an adult, and with much conviction, that if he could go…

October 14, 2021(1 minute 22 seconds) We are in this together you know, dancing, skipping, or shuffling forward. One day at a time, one inhale followed by one exhale. Seeking to live Kingdom-minded and walk in a manner worthy of the gospel as we sojourn…

9-30-21(1 minute 20 seconds) A treasured friend entrusted a secret to me last night and with her permission, I share this.My friend had seen the brokenness of her husband’s heart from childhood trauma long before he did. For more than three months in the still…

9-16-21 (2 minutes 11 seconds) Back when we lived in central Iowa, the phone rang very early on a Sunday morning.Our distressed hog farmer friend needed us to come immediately to help. There was a severe crisis brewing in his barn. We hastily threw old…

8-26-21(1 minute, 54 seconds) “I’m very sorry Jill,” the assistant said to me apologetically. “We weren’t able to save your sole.” Ever since my botched total hip surgery, I’ve had a “hitch in my get-along” and a difference in the length of my legs. This…