Tests, themes, and threads turned up in my notes as I pondered this week's blog post.  Oh my, I thought what a start to the new year – a good start,  though and not one for panic. Busy but blessed. What do I mean? Tests I want you to know as readers of Healthy Spirituality, I am changing some background, behind the scenes structure of this blog. In January, there may be times the blog may not be available as it gets tweaked and tuned up.  For example, many of you have noticed the change in the web world from http to more secure https – that is one example of the structure renovation. Tests? I am hoping you never see much disruptions and I survive the details of working with a much more advanced techy person who speaks in words and language I don't fully understand. Yes, it is in English but all this techspeak is outside my comfort zone. When we remodeled the house last year, the project was messy, uncomfortable, and unpredictable.  But once the project was completed, the … [Read more...]

Shuffle?  You know the movement – dragging feet, stumbling back and forth between two sides. Changing our body weight from one leg to another, moving only slightly when feeling awkward, embarrassed or uncertain. Or to intermix like the cards in a deck or shuffling papers on our desks into a different order. The movement between 2018 into 2019 shuffled in my spirit this year. I normally love this time of year and relish the fresh new year just waiting to emerge. But this year I found myself vacillating back and forth in my annual reflection of the old year and the yearly planning for the new year. But now as 2019 is birthed and time moves on, I am realizing the lessons I learned while doing this wavering spiritual shuffle. I needed the time bouncing back and forth to gain a new perspective about how I was feeling and recalling the past 12 months. And my opinion about 2018 did change during this spiritual shuffle. Guess an occasional swing between old and new brings … [Read more...]

Where are you finding meaning? I try to see God in nature, experience his presence in prayer and reading, and listen for his voice in conversations and precious moments with friends and family. Lately, I am finding meaning in memes I run across on Facebook. They pop up randomly and nudge my heart to pause and think. I imagine God creating them in Canva and sending them just for me. Paying attention to all the connections in our lives reveal God in new ways. Wake up, Jeanie! I have something I want you to consider, says the Lord to my sleepy, distracted self. Yes, paying attention to the details helps in finding meaning in our lives. Here are a few memes lately that stopped my hectic running and scattered schedule and I spent time talking and smiling with God. TOUCHING REMINDER OF LOVE     ENOUGH IS MY 2018 WORD OF THE YEAR     WILL I EVER LEARN THIS?   SOMETHING TO PONDER FOR US ALL     GOOD WORD TO KNOW … [Read more...]

Why Do Daily Devotions? Reading the Bible and other inspirational words start my day off with the right frame of mind/heart/spirit. Devotionals deepen my prayers and give me new perspectives. Often I hear God through other writer's insights and words. Devotions breathe new life into my tired soul. They nourish me, strengthen me, and shape my spirit. Devotions realign my thoughts with God's thoughts; God's vision unclouds my point of view. Time in fellowship with God become a sanctuary of worship and love.  I hear God better when I quiet my noisy interior and enter his presence. Consistent connection with God is a joy and source of guidance and correction.  The devil loves a dusty Bible, you know. Worshipping and being with God isn’t only a one hour on Sunday, but envelopes our every moment. Daily devotions help me praise God and worship him. Devotionals invite me into God's word. I see once again my brokenness, my sin, my ego and am received by a loving, … [Read more...]

Connections. This was the word I tucked into my heart to serve as my intention for my recent pilgrimage to Ireland. I wrote in my journal I wanted to make connections with: God Nature/landscape Others My ancestral roots My own soul How would I do this? By listening, being present, and being open to this adventure. How did it work?  Yes, I did make connections, but also discovered (and am learning from) unexpected divisions. Connections I will write later about my other connections, but today want to share with you where I experienced God on this journey. God appeared to me in the four elements in wild and mighty ways. I giggled and danced with God's hurricanelike winds at the Cliffs of Moher. He bounced me around reminding me of his power and his presence. Exhilarating joy bubbled up in my heart and the desert place in my heart erupted with refreshing waters. God was there, beyond my imagination and out of my control, yet present for me and all to … [Read more...]

Dark or light? In the northern hemisphere, we are heading into longer darkness. I keep one of the light machines on my desk for this time of year. I am more of a light gal than one who likes darkness.  Give me sunshine, please, not gloomy days which darken my moods. Yet my small group is reading and really enjoying Barbara Brown Taylor's book Learning to Walk in the Dark.  Her words are showing me new ideas, lessons, and possibilities to darkness. Her writing draws me in and creates a hunger for me for the calm of darkness and the courage to face and explore it more deeply. “When, despite all my best efforts, the lights have gone off in my life (literally or figuratively, take your pick), plunging me into the kind of darkness that turns my knees to water, nonetheless I have not died. The monsters have not dragged me out of bed and taken me back to their lair. The witches have not turned me into a bat. Instead, I have learned things in the dark that I could never have … [Read more...]