Gaining a heart of wisdom
I come from a tradition that is suspicious of written or scripted prayers, believing that spontaneity is a sign of sincerity and casting askance glances at those who must borrow the words of others in order to talk to God. Then I became a mother and realized that not only were my own words in… Continue reading A Mosaic of Images on Joy and Prayer
Apparently, in addition to all his better-known gifts, Thomas Jefferson was a gardener. His experimentation with horticulture added over five hundred new fruits and vegetables to the world, but he was never able to successfully cultivate a vineyard at Monticello, his beloved Virginia home. Here's why: the French varieties of grapes he coveted had no… Continue reading Finding Rest in Humility
Because I'm a planner, I carry a planner, but the truth is that my planner carries me. All pristine and un-besmirched, the 2017 edition holds out the promise of glorious accomplishment and blessed organization in a life that often feels like spinning plates and chaos management. Shannan Martin started her marriage and motherhood in much… Continue reading The Freedom is in the Falling
I googled the term the first time I heard it, not even sure how to pronounce it. Enneagram: "Any - a - gram" Named for a nine-sided polygon, the Enneagram distinguishes and describes nine facets of the human personality, nine different ways of being, nine unique manifestations of the image of God on this planet. In The… Continue reading The Enneagram and The Road Back to You
In my gratitude journal, you will not find the words "back pain" or "dead air conditioner in the mini-van." And even though I have read (and re-read) the Beatitudes, I am in a season of mourning deeply over the advancing dementia of a dear friend -- and I'm not feeling the least bit blessed by… Continue reading Ten Thousand Truths
Living near the coast of Maine and worshiping in a small fishing village, I've spent some idyllic moments on the deck of a friend's lobster boat and marveled at the treasures (the beautiful and the ugly) that come tumbling out of a lobster trap. I've skirted the perimeter of a secluded island with four little… Continue reading Dramatic, Wild, and Wet
Even though the class was a disaster, I still regret quitting high school physics. I wish that I had hung in there with my little TI-30 calculator and all the boys who wore theirs in "denim-look" vinyl cases hanging off their belts or bulging from their shirt pockets -- not because I suddenly care about… Continue reading Persevering – in Grace
So many books. So little time. Tozer is my "undiscovered author," and it's not as if I haven't delighted in brief quotations of his words -- a mix of the understated and the profound. It is even true that portions of his sermons read online have jolted me awake to God's holiness and drawn me closer to the… Continue reading A.W. Tozer: Thoughts on Prayer
Living Our Days 