Hi Friends, In bold below is the chorus of a song I wrote with friends a few years ago. Below that are a few thoughts. Jesus, Oh my Brother There are moments of grief and uncertainty in life where time seems to slow to a crawl. This is when we most need Jesus our Brother. When the door shut behind him, and you didn’t realize it would be for the last time. When the diagnosis comes in, and the ground swims under your feet. When answers are elusive, and life is hanging precariously in the balance. When all you can do is wait, and tomorrow feels impossible to face. There is a pain that seems to split the heart in two. It most certainly splits a life in two. There is a “before”, an “after”, and in the middle? Gethsemane. These are the moments we need Jesus, our Brother. The One who gets down in the trench with us, down in that dark valley, and suddenly we are no longer alone. He breathed these same agonizing prayers in the garden, drops of blood on His brow. The Hill of Golgotha stretched out ahead. In that moment where all we hold precious is suspended in mid-air — life in slow motion — He hangs suspended in mid-air, too. His arms, stretched wide on either side, reach far beyond what is possible for the human frame. His very love is reaching, reaching, beyond decades and centuries, beyond the bounds of time and space all the way to where we are right now. In His suffering, His waiting, He is holding us. The sudden awareness of His presence. The gentle nearness we feel, even in the middle of earth-shattering pain and uncertainty. This is Him. He is carrying you, right here, right now. He is with us. — Anna |
I am a singer, songwriter, wife, mother, Jesus follower. I send out a 2-minute read every Tuesday about Jesus and life in God.
Hi Friends, I am an all-or-nothing gardener. And by that I mean that I do absolutely nothing until the task can’t possibly wait another day, and I have to do all of it at once. Weeding, planting, preparation… these don’t have to be stressful things. You can plan ahead, do a bit each day. You know, wisdom and all that. But I’ve been all-or-nothing gardening for so long, I’ve come to accept it as a weakness I’ll likely have lifelong. Resignation and green-thumb mediocrity. That’s where I’ve...
Hi Friends, Happy Mother’s Day week! I once saw a video where a woman shared “one simple tip to keeping your home spotless”. In the next scene, she ushers her children and husband out the front door, and closes it behind them. Brilliant! We chuckle at memes like this because of the seed of truth underneath them. There is so much pressure on mothers, self-imposed and otherwise, to do it all—keep a perfect home, advance her career, remember all the milestones, volunteer at all the things. We...
Hi Friends,Ever feel utterly helpless when you hear about injustice? Pain, suffering... and the lack of truly helpful solutions can feel like the nail in the coffin of it all. And yet, Jesus. Let’s talk about that.In bold below is a chorus I wrote about this, and below that are a few thoughts. The Lord is good, He is kind, He is just See how He lifts up the poor from the dust See how He sets them on thrones like princes Clothes them in His righteousness Things are not as they seem. So often...