Reflections and Responses

1 LORD, hear my prayer, listen to my cry for mercy; in your faithfulness and righteousness come to my relief. 2 Do not bring your servant into judgment, for no one living is righteous before you. 3 The enemy pursues me, he crushes me to the ground; he makes me dwell in the darkness like those long dead. 4 So my spirit grows faint within me; my heart within me is dismayed. 5 I remember the days of long ago; I meditate on all your works and consider what your hands have done. 6 I spread out my hands to you; I thirst for you like a parched land.[a] 7 Answer me quickly, LORD; my spirit fails. Do not hide your face from me or I will be like those who go down to the pit. 8 Let the morning bring me word of your unfailing love, for I have put my trust in you. Show me the way I should go, for to you I entrust my life. 9 Rescue me from my enemies, LORD, for I hide myself in you. 10 Teach me to do your will, for you are my God; may your good Spirit

Some days you just miss things. Today I am missing: My sister My mission trips to El Salvador springtime - warm weather, flowers, greenery, anticipation of summer I am very grateful for the present moment and confident that God has things for me TODAY. But my heart and mind have wandered to those three things today. Seeking my DAILY bread and charging ahead!

I have been hit with a fear in the last year and a half that the enemy is really trying to use to cripple me. I have a chance to face this fear in the next month or so. I'm looking forward to it on one hand because I want to get over it. I've done some reading about phobias, and the best way to get over them, I mean REALLY get over them, is to face them, but create a different outcome (experience peace and secure feelings, not fear/anxiety). By putting yourself in the situation again but creating a positive experience, you disassociate the situation with anxiety and instead associate it with calm/peace/tranquility. This makes logical sense, but there are steps to be taken to mentally prepare yourself for this. Not many people can just walk into a situation that has provoked fear in the past and snap their fingers to create a positive experience. I've been taking these steps, but will you join me in praying that God will help me conquer this fear and make my next experience

John says often that he feels like we should still be in high school. It simply does not seem possible that we can be roughly one quarter of a century old, have "real jobs," be married, and own a house. We sometimes feel like time hasn't passed and we are still the teenagers who loved riding in his truck listening to country music, sharing coconut cream pie milkshakes from Sonic, and going out to lunch after church. Regardless, I spent some time today with a friend from college who I don't see often, and suddenly I realized that time HAS passed. Reconnecting with a person or a place from the past can have that effect on you - helping you see how you have changed and things are different than they once were. I suddenly felt very different, and the person across the table from me was also very different from the girl I'd made many memories with at Berry. Nothing was bad between us - just unfamiliar. Spending time with her made it hit home that time has gone by and

"Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things." - Philippians 4:8 Many of us have read this verse hundreds of times - normally in the context of encouragement to think positively. However, I heard someone give commentary on this verse that really spoke to me and has revolutionized the way I think (or... the way I aim to think!). Focus on the first adjective in the verse: whatever is true . You may not realize it, but thinking only about "true" things only is actually quite a challenge. I find that I spend a lot of mental energy dwelling on things that I wish were true, things that were once true (the past), things that I hope to be true soon (the future)... but these thoughts are not in alignment with what the writer asks us to do: think exclusively about what's true. I find that I spend mental

One of the tremendous blessings about never moving too far from home is the proximity to so many groups of friends & the ability to see one another over the years. I grew up in one town in the ATL suburbs, went to school 1.5 hours away, and then moved back to the same metro area. Living in the same 1.5-hour radius for my entire life has made it feasible to stay connected with friends from as far back as preschool (yes, preschool!) and from every single school, church, job, or living situation I've ever been a part of. My husband is the exact same way - having grown up in one place and never lived further than an hour away, he's still friends with people from "way back." Both of our families (immediate and extended) live nearby also, making it geographically convenient to be in relationship with all of these individuals now as adults. While the ability for us both to see & stay connected with these loved ones is a true gift from God, it can also make things som