Simplifying… me

In her book, Little Women, Louisa May Alcott describes a scene in chapter fifteen, where a “telegraph” is received by Mrs. March regarding her husband, who has been fighting in the Civil War. Its contents inform her of his great illness and that she should come at once. Her four daughters surround her, feeling the [...]

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They call us the “Sandwich Generation”, and I feel it.
Let’s break down this metaphor.
The first piece of bread: Our parents.
They are aging. Both sets of parents, mine and Joel’s. And while they are still active and living happily independent lives, we have observed the sands of time running more quickly through the hourglass. The biggest [...]

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For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life (John 3:16).
Love among us.
Christmas conjures up a myriad of thoughts, feelings, and responses.
Some people twirl through the season like the Nutcracker’s Sugarplum Princess, while others trudge along from November first to December twenty-fifth like [...]

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Let every heart prepare him room.
Joy to the World, written by Isaac Watts (1719)
Our college kids will be home for Christmas soon!
Floors are being swept and mopped while beds are being made.
A menu has been prepared with much-loved home-cooked meals.
The fridge is stocked, and favorite snacks are in the cupboard.
Our home is being prepared for [...]

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Self-care in a season of chaos.

When we moved to South Africa, I had come out of a very challenging season in Malawi. It was hard on all fronts – from helping our children transition, to navigating life in a foreign country, the ever-precarious visa process, the insurgence of Covid-19, to understanding a new organization [...]

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He tends his flock like a shepherd: He gathers the lambs in his arms and carries them close to his heart; he gently leads those that have young.
Isaiah 40:11
I’ve been a little obsessed with the animal kingdom lately. We were at a game reserve last year, and there seemed to have been a baby boom [...]

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Ordinary is highly under-rated.
It seems the sincere longing for significance has pushed past contentment in doing a job well done, to that of being a world changer…influencer…and platform-creator. It is not enough, anymore, to do the hard and consistent daily work of investing our lives into meaningful, yet oftentimes, ordinary endeavors. Today, we are driven [...]

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As I watched the clock strike midnight, its hand leaving 2021 and tick-tock-ticking its way into 2022, I felt a wave of relief. Covid and transition left me feeling kind of empty. Rather than enter the new year with a bang, I mostly coasted in on fumes.
I came down with a fever on Christmas Day [...]

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Immanuel

Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.
Matthew 11:28-30
Christmas is here, and [...]

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Love.

For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.
John 3:16

For God so loved…
The word “so,” when used as an adverb, can have a few different meanings. It can express the degree or extent of something, or it [...]

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