Full of Joy

Please welcome my friend, and one of the fabulous leaders from my writing group, Beth Fowler! Her story fascinates me, and I know you will be blessed by reading it. She is writing in response to my question, "Who is Jesus to you?" as part of the Who is Jesus series.   *** Who was Jesus to me? He was a storybook character like Santa Claus and Prince Charming. I went to Sunday school and endured goofy flannel-board stories narrated by ladies that seemed very old to me. At age 12, I quit going to Sunday school and church. My parents didn’t question why. Faith was never discussed in our house. You went to school on weekdays, the YMCA on Saturday and church on Sunday. Now my Sundays were free! Decades passed. M y life looked perfect. In reality, many mornings I woke up angry, but didn’t know why. Time slogged by as I guzzled alcohol, studied Buddhism, attended Avatar (not the movie, but a thought system), consumed legal and illegal drugs, used sarcasm...

Happy Tuesday Everyone! I am so pleased to introduce you to my friend, Jill. We served teenagers together for three year at our church in Northern Virginia. Not only that, but Jill and I also share a passion for Jesus and writing about Jesus. ( Check out her blog here .) Recently she posted a picture on Instagram about how she fit her entire wardrobe into a suitcase. I was impressed, and a little convicted. Please give her a warm welcome as she shares her heart with us today. (You might also want to grab a hot cup of coffee with pumpkin creamer, like I did when I read it! Oh the joys of Fall!)       Some may call my way of life, “minimalism,” but I just call it   being faithful with little.     IT ALL STARTED when I moved to my fifth apartment   in five years . I was moving from a town house with two roommates into a basement apartment of a family friend, in a house that was already completely furn...

Colors of Brokenness Penny Heilman (Read more about Penny here .)       A fallen leaf before its time While others flourished green Torn and taken from the tree O spinning, spiraling me   Why did the others get to stay While I was called to wither And take my place here on the dust Where frightening creatures slither   The view was better from up high So clear and undisturbed But since I’ve settled to the ground My vision has been blurred   Rays of hope from the sun Visit on occasion Revealing shades I’ve never seen Around my deep abrasion   Yet in the shadow of the wound I cannot remain The colors of my brokenness Bring peace into the pain   A fallen leaf before its time Offensive still it seems Yet being transformed by God’s hand O changing, colorful me     © 2012 Penny Heilman

Hey All! I've asked my friend, Penny to share some of her beautiful poetry and photography  with us for the next couple weeks. I met Penny through my beloved group, The Write Space which meets as a division of Infused Arts through Living Word Community Church . I'm so honored to share her artistry with you readers! Please enjoy! Dandelions – An Acrostic Poem   D eeply rooted, faithful, A rrive on time each year. N ever have the dandelions failed to reappear. D oes it ever make you wonder why this weed is so despised? E very time we take its life, it only multiplies. L ittle yellow wonders, I nvite us to embrace their O vercoming power, despite the things we face. N otice how the dandelions give way to the wind. S tanding tall, they give their all, so new life can begin.   Penny Heilman, Copyright 2016   For Reflection:   In what ways do dandelions remind you of Jesus?

Hey All! I am SO happy to introduce you to a new guest blogger- Taylor Sharp! I know Taylor from our church's youth group. She has such a heart for Jesus, and people. It's a JOY to have her share with us today! “Humble yourselves, therefore under God’s mighty hand that he may lift you up in due time. Cast all your anxieties on him because he cares for you.” 1 Peter 5:6-7 In September of 2014, I was diagnosed with a concussion after taking a basketball to the back of the  head in gym class. (Haha! Pathetic right?!) At the time, I was told the concussion was minor, and in a few weeks I would be as good as new. After several days off from school, three dropped classes, quitting my seven year commitment to the swim team, physical therapy, turning my back on God, two years of headache medicine, and much more, I can now say this concussion was anything but minor. It changed my entire life. Because of the way my brain reacted to the injury, I experienced more anxiety than ev...

Please welcome back for the SECOND time, my dear friend, Lisa Beavers! *** It was Valentine's weekend. It was also the same month that marked 10 years since my husband had gotten down on one knee, opened up a box to reveal a princess cut solitaire diamond, and asked me to marry him.  I was enjoying an evening out on the town with my coworkers as a treat from our boss who gave us tickets to see the show “Grease”. We had dinner before the show, then afterwards spontaneously decided to swing by Krispy Kreme because what's better than fresh, hot donuts at 10:00 at night? I came home giddy from sugar, bubbling over with stories to my husband. I plopped on the couch next to him, and suddenly noticed as I looked down at my left hand that something was very wrong. The diamond from my engagement ring was gone . The prongs stuck out, empty of the treasure they had held onto for 10 years. Not the actual ring ;) My heart plunged. On...

It is my pleasure to introduce you to Billie Kahler, our guest blogger for today! Chuck and I first met Billie and her husband at church in the hallway picking up our kids. Then later Billie and I were apart of the same writing group! It is always a joy to connect with a fellow writer, and my privilege to share her post with you today! Thank you for sharing your beautiful heart, Billie! Billie and her husband, Mark *** In the quietness of the morning, I sit with my coffee in hand while anticipating my day.   It is my favorite time of the day.   Not because I have a special affection for mornings, but because it is the one time that I am able to savor 3 things I love: coffee, quietness, and Jesus.     To be honest, there are times that I am weary and spiritually apprehensive during these quiet moments with God.   I know my heart’s true desire .   However, I also know that somewhere in my day the connection between my desire to radiate Christ ...

(L) My friend, Dan (R) Jamie Allow me to introduce you to my dear friend, spiritual mentor, and former Pastor, Jamie Miller! If you read the post, "Sweet Things" a few weeks ago by Gretchen Miller I suspect by now you're connecting the dots they are husband and wife! They are so dear to me. God used them to help shape my heart understanding of who Christ is, and how He loves me. They serve college students (and any person they meet at any age!) through Consumed Ministries . Jamie is also the author of the great book, "Fully Alive".   I'm honored to share Jamie's words with you today. *** I currently have one tattoo on the inside of my left arm. If I ever decide to give that tattoo some company I already know what I would have permanently inked into my skin. Most followers of Jesus I know that have a faith-based tattoo have some form of the cross as either the entire art form or part of it. I obviously appreciate the cross and will celebrate the v...

It’s not my story; It’s your story, Father, so help me tell it well… Hello blog world. I hope you all are doing well. I am writing to you from Bloomington, Minnesota—the place I have called home now for 11 years. Abigail approached me about 3 months ago to write a post, and I have had several ideas swirling around in my head, but nothing was making its way in coherent form on paper. This weekend, God solidified in me what I hope will be an encouragement to you. My husband, Jamie, and I work with college students at Normandale Community College, and this weekend was the winter retreat. In the first session together my friend Ben shared his testimony. Ben came to follow Jesus as a teenager, and at least from my perspective, he was given a very special gift. Ben shared with us that while he didn’t have full understanding of who or what he was deciding to follow, he did feel a deep conviction that God was good, God was real, and God loved him. These convictions have stayed with h...

Gretchen is in the white sweater across the table from me! My dear friend, Gretchen, will be the guest writer for tomorrow. I've been anticipating her post for several months, and couldn't be more honored to share her thoughts on here. Gretchen is a woman who loves Jesus with a loyal passion, loves her family with unrivaled dedication, and loves her community with open arms and a serious commitment. I should know. I was part of her church family for over three years in my Minnesota days. And much longer than that if you go back to our days living in Pennsylvania together when she and her husband, Jamie, were my leaders in the college student program at our church. Gretchen has walked with me during the darkest years of my life. And she has cheered me on from afar during the most prosperous years. She has invested in me, and helped shape the Truth I believe about Jesus today. Fun fact: My Mom got to be at the hospital the night Gretchen's second daughter was born, a...

The tree keeps falling over. The dinner burns. The baby spits up on your new sweater. Finances are too tight to buy presents. Family can’t make it for the holiday. The neighbor you invited to church didn’t come. You miss the celebration due to sickness. The flight is canceled. That special present didn’t arrive in time. The weather isn’t cooperating. You’re stressed and yell at someone you love. Another car hits yours in the mall parking lot. There’s no bonus this year. That one person’s attitude is ruining Christmas (again). Memories of past holidays are painful. A loved one passes away. You’re spending another New Year’s Eve alone. Yet another year of unanswered prayer goes by. Life is disappointing. Hurt is real. It may be no big deal, but it is at the time, and it is to you. Most of the above list has happened to me. Disappointment is often my reality because my expectations are high. My self-appointments don’t materialize in the timing or way I imagined. I naïve...

Allow me to introduce you to my long-time friend, Kristi! I've known her since I was 10 years old, if you can believe that. When I first met her, my family had just moved half way across the country from Iowa- which we all loved. We hated moving to Pennsylvania. Kristi, on the other hand, was ecstatic to have us living in PA. She said to me, "Now the college (where my Dad got a new job) has the best speakers in the country!" (Also referring to her own Dad.) That actually sums Kristi up well- very positive, see's the bright side, extremely loyal, and is very passionate for the people and places she loves. In the pictures bellow Kristi is the one behind me, and Mandi is to the right. (Hi Mandi!) For the past couple of years Mandi, Kristi, and I have been able to hang out several times together even though we live very far apart. They both frequently visit their missions agency which is only about 30 minutes away from us. A very sweet thing for me. It's always a ...

I feel like I have big shoes to fill after Abigail’s introduction! I hope I do it justice. I’m Heidi. I am a graphic designer, small business owner and a lover of travel. I am a Type A list maker. I have lived in nine states and 14 cities. I attended 11 different schools. I hate onions. I like black licorice. I love grapefruit. I have no favorite color, but my closet is organized by color. I am a left-handed introvert. I have been wracking my brain for what to write about here for weeks. I am not at the end of some grand journey where I have wisdom or some deep reflections to impart. Instead, I feel like I am in the midst of a painful and ongoing battle in multiple areas of my life. One of the most significant battles being my “woman”hood. I say womanhood with quotes because I am a 36 year old who has yet to claim herself as a “woman”. In my own mind, I am still a girl, trying to find her way into the world of women. I think a lot of this has to do with the environment I wa...