Perseverence
What I learned from writing out the entire book of Genesis
Yes, all 50 chapters of it.
It took 179 pages and 346 days.
I began on June 1, 2020 and wrote out between four and fourteen verses every day. Why? The short answer is that writing Scripture by hand keeps me engaged in a way that my wandering mind won’t always permit. (The long answer is here.)
I have a new appreciation (and respect!) for the scribes who painstakingly wrote out the entire Bible until Gutenberg invented the printing press. But there’s more for us here than just admiration.
Read MoreSeeing God in the suffering
It’s pretty easy to feel compassion for Joseph. Despite a seeming lack of emotional intelligence (telling his brothers about his prophetic dreams of ruling over them), being sold into slavery by those brothers into an unfamiliar culture, away from everything he knew and loved, seems incredibly unkind.
God absolutely redeemed Joseph’s experiences—using them to preserve His people through a severe famine. But it’s a difficult story to watch unfold on the pages of Scripture. Betrayed by his brothers and sold into slavery. Framed for sexual assault and imprisoned. Helped fellow prisoners only to be forgotten by one of them for two additional years.
Once finally released, his life begins to change direction. Joseph was elevated to an incredibly high position of authority—second only to Pharoah. He ultimately married and had children.
Reading the account of his life, we naturally feel the pain of Joseph’s hardships—and might even feel righteous anger on his behalf. But Joseph didn’t languish in his own pain.
Read MoreWhen we’re in a season of waiting
Does anyone actually like waiting? It feels like doing wall-sits indefinitely.
And we do a lot of waiting in life. We wait…
…on hold with the airlines or for the utility installers to arrive.
…for results from a medical test.
…for an answer from the admissions office at the university we want to attend.
…for the pandemic to end.
…for whatever difficult situation we’re dealing with to resolve.
…for Jesus to come again and set all things right.
When we’re waiting, time seems to move like molasses on a winter day.
And when the resolution is so long in coming, it’s easy to wonder whether God has forgotten us (or worse).
When we know Him to be the powerful God He is—able to suspend the natural laws He put into place—we wonder why He doesn’t just part the waters of our “Jordan River” and end our wilderness waiting.
It confuses us that He doesn’t.
Read MoreHow to hold on to faith in the midst of uncertainty
Let’s be real: we are coping with an abundance of ambiguity right now. 2020 taught us to live with open hands like we never have before.
And with so much loss in the last year, we might (understandably) be struggling to hold on to our faith. Trusting God with our needs, and the needs of those we love, might feel harder than it did when 2020 dawned.
So how do we hold on to faith as we look to the future?
The answer is surprisingly simple:
Read MoreLessons from turning 50… in a pandemic
I had a birthday last week. A BIG birthday. To celebrate (COVID-style), and nod to my 50 years treading the earth, I decided to walk 50,000 steps. (When I hatched this hair-brained scheme, I had no idea it would amount to about 22 miles. Yes, I was tired and sore when I was done.)
I invited some of my friends—from all chapters of my life and all parts of the globe—to “walk with me” by phone for part of my nearly eight-hour effort. The calls were sweet and all-too-brief but soul-filling (and blessedly distracting). This was exactly what I needed to mark the moment in a way that wouldn’t fade into the blur of sameness that 2020 has become.
Afterwards, reflecting on my calls with the wonderful women who joined me, I waxed philosophical. Below are 17 tid-bit insights extracted from a glorious day rich with fellowship-by-phone, recorded here for my posterity and—I believe—the benefit of us all:
Read MoreTrying again: Faithful perseverance in seasons of difficulty
We’re sitting amidst another COVID spike, wondering, perhaps, whether we’ll ever clear this thing. I’m not an epidemiologist (and I don’t even play one on TV) but I do see something in the Bible that might be helpful right now—whether you’re frustrated with COVID or dealing with an entirely different challenge.
I wrote earlier this year on some applications from Noah and the account of the flood. I recently revisited the same passage and saw something new:
Noah released a bird four separate times as the waters began to recede.
Four.
Only on the fourth time did the dove not return, serving as evidence that soon the land would again be dry and inhabitable.
Whether you are
- grappling with the fits and starts of a new business venture,
- launching your children into the world,
- taking on a new role in the workplace,
- making friends in a new hometown,
- or merely antsy for a post-pandemic reality…
Clingy. In the Best Way
Y’all know I love words. They’re kind of my thing.
I was drawn to explore a Hebrew word last week after reflecting on the story of Ruth. The imagery of Ruth “clinging” to Naomi was compelling. Though Naomi had instructed her daughters-in-law to stay in their native Moab instead of accompanying her back to Bethlehem, Ruth clung to Naomi.
The women wept together, parting was clearly difficult—they’d buried their husbands together, too.
Clingy.
It’s a word that, in our modern use, seems to have connotations of desperation.
We often view desperation as a negative thing.
Read MoreHow Christians can respond to COVID-19
What guidance does the Bible have to offer us in the midst of a pandemic?
How should Christians respond to the challenges presented by COVID-19? When (and how) will this resolve? We’ve all got far more questions than answers. The novel coronavirus isn’t specifically addressed in Scripture. But the Bible does offer the timeless, applicable wisdom we need–even for the situation we face.
I’ve been reading (and writing!) my way through the book of Genesis this summer. Noah’s “quarantine” in the ark in chapter eight felt oddly relatable (though I am not drawing a comparison between the flood and the coronavirus). So, I determined to follow his lead and discovered some practical nuggets that will help us continue to weather our current circumstances.
Read MoreHow to encourage one another
I’ve watched a lot of cross-country races in my day. All three of my kids participate in the sport, so I’ve become a big fan. One of my favorite races is the Steven Thompson Memorial Centipede. It’s unlike any other high school meet my kids’ teams attend because the athletes run as a single unit for the first two-thirds of the race. No joke: all seven members of the team hold a rope while they run.
For the final mile, they drop the rope and finish the race as individuals. But each athlete’s finishing time is driven, in large part, by the strength of their team whose collective pace positions them for the final mile. The fastest athletes finish slower than they do when they run alone and, often, the slower runners finish faster. Read More
Take note (you’ll be glad you did)
I had completely forgotten about it.
It wasn’t until I cleaned out a few desk drawers that I found it again, buried amongst scraps of paper and some expired coupons (I’ve just never mastered that coupon thing…). The notecard was from a retreat I attended several years ago. During one of the personal moments of reflection, we were assigned to write a note to ourselves from Jesus addressing whatever challenge we were experiencing at that moment. I unfolded the pink-striped paper and found a fresh gift, a loving dose of encouragement. I hope they offer you the same: