I've found myself groping around for a little bit of hope, and I'm not alone. A handful of friends both online and IRL have expressed that they, too, are feeling anxious or depressed or in need of something to look forward to to help them keep going lately.
Read MoreThey call what came first chaos,
said You were there, hovering—
waiting for the perfect moment
to unleash the light and make
something out of all our nothing.
The truth is, I've been feeling a bit blue -- a bit out of sorts and off-key lately. And on the days when life doesn't look the way I thought it would or think that it should, I try to remind myself of the ways God is showing up where I am with generous extra helpings of shalom.
Read MoreThere's this beautiful old tree overlooking the Reedy River and Falls Park that has affectionately been named The Medusa Tree. It stands, all of its roots exposed from soil erosion and weathered storms.
Read MoreI've lived in a three-hour radius nestled in the foothills of the Appalachian Mountains for my entire life. Growing up, my friends and I stayed out past dark playing in our neighborhood's lazy loops and stealing crabapples from an elderly neighbor's front yard, only breaking up the party when someone's mama whistled that it was time to come in.
Read MoreThis space has been quiet for two months now as I have tried to learn what my friend Alia so beautifully calls "the fluency of hope." There are days now and then when 2:30 hits and I realize I have forgotten how to breathe and have to rediscover the rhythm of my lungs inhaling and exhaling.
Read More