Hi Friends, We had a huge blizzard this past weekend that dumped over a foot of snow in 24 hours. We woke up to a blanket of white. My kids are thrilled to have more snow shoveling gigs than they can handle. They shovel, stop by the house for snacks, throw their soggy gloves back on and head out to sled. After sledding? Shoveling… and repeat. Heavy snows seem to come at the beginning of January each year in the Midwest, and it always feels like they give the perfect visual for a new year. A field of snow without even a single footprint. A blank slate. A fresh start. But this year, I’m pondering what’s under that snowfall. Underneath the snow blanketing my backyard are the Nerf bullets we failed to pick up, the poison ivy in one garden bed I can’t seem to get rid of, another garden bed in which I never cleaned up the debris of dead, brown tomato plant branches. Under the blank slate of our new year, there lies all kinds of things, too. The good choices — like seeds we planted — from last year that will come up and bear fruit. The felt absence of seeds we wish we’d planted and didn’t. There’s also the debris… Less innocuous than forgotten nerf bullets, the actions of others can leave mementos of pain strewn about in our hearts, just under the surface. But if there’s anything I learned of the Lord in 2024, it’s that He’s a perfect Shepherd who leads with gentleness, wisdom, and patience. Not in a hurry, not unaware, He knows just the things to uncover at just the right time. Our part? To say yes. To not look away. To stand so confident in His love for us that we can risk facing our brokenness as we wait for His healing. If you’re stepping into the blank slate of this New Year aware of things waiting beneath the surface, join me in this prayer: Jesus, have your way. All that lies underneath the surface of my heart is Yours. Come heal, and bring forth life in every way. – 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, If you’ve been following along for a while, you know my family has been on what we are calling a “church tour” for the last year. We have been to many different churches representing different denominations and expressions of worship. And with each unique experience, each vastly different expression, one thing was the same in every place we went: We sang. In fact, in the Orthodox Church, minus a ten minute portion of the two-hour service, they sang the whole time. The megachurch...
Hi Friends, Remember the story in 1 Kings when Elijah stood on a mountain before the Lord, and the Lord passed by him? A fire broke out, a strong wind tore through, and an earthquake erupted… But the Lord was not in those things. After the fire, winds and earthquake, there was a still small voice. Him. I don’t want to miss those whispers. The moment He enters your thoughts as you’re chopping vegetables in the kitchen. The worship song that lifts your heart during your morning commute. The...
Dear Friends, When my oldest son was two years old, he used to do this thing. Oftentimes he did this when he was tired, or frustrated, or lonely. He would pull on me and say, “Sing about me?” And so, I’d lift him onto my lap, hold him close, and sing. We sang about the oatmeal he had for breakfast, how he had blueberries and said no to the cream. We sang about the consequence he got an hour ago for refusing to obey. We sang about how he played with the excavator he got for his birthday, and...