A Life Update

It’s been a minute.

I haven’t blogged in a while and thought it was time for an update. Life has been a whirlwind of change in our house and it’s taken some time for me to adjust to the new normal. A year ago, I changed jobs and started working full time for my alma mater. My work this past year has involved a decent amount of travel all over the country which has been fun, but also an adjustment for my family. About the same time, we sold our house, moved into a rental, and before long, started building a house in Tennessee where we will move later this year. They say moving and starting a new job are two of the most stressful things in life. No kidding!

Meanwhile, our youngest is about to graduate from high school and I’m processing what it means to launch him out into the world. It’s one of those happy-sad moments of life. This school year so far has been filled with all the “lasts.” Last birthday at home. Last football game. Last homecoming dance. I’ve seen the empty nest season of life on the horizon for a while now but all of a sudden, it’s nearly here. I admit I have some trepidation and uncertainty about it and remain prayerful for the Lord’s comfort and wisdom as I walk through it.

Despite my work schedule, I’ve managed to continue speaking at women’s ministry retreats. Last year I spoke in California, Virginia, New Jersey and lots of places in between. Next year will be ten years since my first book released on the Psalms of Lament and I’m so grateful that I continue to teach on the topic at retreats and other speaking engagements. I also continue to speak about the fear of the Lord, union with Christ and one another (biblical friendship), and parenting.

The past year I’ve participated in a few different group writing projects, including a devotional for teens and two study Bibles. I look forward to sharing about them when they are released later this year/early next year. I also continue to edit and manage the PCA’s women’s ministry blog, enCourage. I love connecting with writers and mentoring them through the writing process. This month, I’m hosting an event for writers at the PCA’s annual women’s ministry conference. It’s an event I’ve hosted each year for almost a decade!

It’s not lost on me that many of the things I’ve written about over the years (and speak about!) are things that I am working through right now and will so for a while. Change. Transition. Uncertainty. Loss. Community. As I let go of one season of life and step into another—in another state!—I know the Lord is with me and trust Him to provide all that I need for all that He calls me to. “His divine power has granted to us all things that pertain to life and godliness, through the knowledge of him who called us to his own glory and excellence” (2 Peter 1:3).

That’s my life update. What is God doing in your life these days?

Photo by Maksim Shutov on Unsplash

When a Christian Writes

When I began writing seriously—not just for my own benefit to process my thoughts and feelings—I had many questions. In many ways, writing was a new and unfamiliar world, complete with its own language and vocabulary, rules and expectations, cultural mores and norms. I felt like a visitor, holding a passport but wanting citizenship.

I remembering asking my questions to any writer who was willing to listen. What kind of questions did I ask? Anything from the process of writing to how to grow in writing to what it means to be a Christian who writes. I also wondered, what does a writer do with the fact that many people have written on the same topic? If, for example, others have written on the topic of prayer or sanctification or suffering, how could I think I have anything to add to the conversation? After all, as the teacher noted, "What has been is what will be, and what has been done is what will be done, and there is nothing new under the sun” (Ecc. 1:9).

One of my favorite tutors on all things writing is C.S. Lewis. Christian Reflections is a collection of his essays and in his essay titled, “Christianity and Literature,” he describes the Christian writer in contrast to the unbelieving writer. “The unbeliever is always apt to make a kind of religion of his aesthetic experiences…He has to be ‘creative’; he has to obey a mystical amoral law called his artistic conscience.” Lewis describes modern literary criticism as exalting what is spontaneous, free of rules, innovative, and nonconforming.

But the believer in contrast is an imitator. "Our whole destiny seems to lie in the opposite direction, in being as little as possible ourselves, in acquiring a fragrance that is not our own but borrowed, in becoming clean mirrors filled with the image of a face that is not ours…the highest good of a creature must be creaturely—that is derivative or reflective.” As image bearers, created to image the One who created all things, our art is imitative art, meant to point to the Original Artist.

Further, Lewis notes, “Applying this principle to literature, in its greatest generality, we should get as the basis of all critical theory the maxim that an author should never conceive himself as bringing into existence beauty or wisdom which did not exist before, but simply and solely as trying to embody in terms of his own art some reflection of eternal Beauty and Wisdom.” This means we find our joy, not so much in building an identity as a creative, but in using our creativity to express the beauty and truth and wisdom of God.

While our art is imitative, it doesn’t mean it will all be the same. God created a diverse humanity with diverse voices and talents and experiences. This means that while we might write on the same topics, we write on those topics out of our God-given diverse gifts and experiences. You and I could both write on the topic of prayer and end up with two different pieces that while different, both point to the wonder and glory of the God who hears and answers our prayers.

The prophet was right, there isn’t anything new under the sun. But this doesn’t mean we shouldn’t write on a topic because other writers have already written on it. The question we ought to ask ourselves isn’t is what I’m writing new? but does what I write reflect the beauty and wisdom of God? Is it good? Does it bring him glory?

“So, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God” (1 Cor. 10:31).

*Photo by Luca Onniboni on Unsplash

Life Update

Ah summer. That sweet time of year where life slows down—where there’s no agenda and lazy afternoons are spent at the pool; where the only decisions to be made are what to read next and what do we want to grill for dinner tonight?

Well, not so much. At least for my family. We’ve been busy non-stop since school ended. It’s like we are making up for lost time, doing ALL THE THINGS. Traveling. Enjoying the great outdoors. Spending time with friends and family. Serving. Summer camps. Appointments. Sports practices. Projects.

You know, all the things.

I thought I’d catch you up on a few things we’ve been up to. My oldest attended a Summit Ministries camp at Covenant College in June. It’s a camp that helps teens learn to discuss their faith, engage culture, and develop a biblical worldview. My son talked for days afterward about his experiences. I highly recommend it.

Earlier this month I tagged along with our church’s youth group on a trip to Eastern Kentucky where we helped repair houses damaged by the floods this past spring. Our original trip was cancelled due to the pandemic and we had to pivot to serve a different ministry in a different location. The teens adjusted well to this change and over the course of the week learned to do things they’d never done. So did I! I discovered that I enjoy mudding drywall; it’s quite satisfying! We also attended a local bluegrass concert and everyone got on the dance floor.

With all our activity, I haven’t written much for the blog or for anywhere else. But I am in the editing process for two projects I finished this past spring. Like Our Father: How God Parents Us and Why That Matters for Our Parenting will release with Moody Publishers sometime next spring. Stay tuned to hear more about it. I’ve also written a follow up book to Tell God How You Feel, titled God Hears Your Heart. You can expect to hear more about that next year as well. This summer, I’ve also enjoyed doing some webinars with readers in Mexico about Los ídolos en el corazón de una madre.

Do you read Tabletalk Magazine? It’s a devotional magazine published by Ligonier Ministries. I will be writing for it every month during 2022. Keep an eye out for my weekend column!

After more than a year of cancelled speaking engagements, opportunities have picked up for me since the spring to speak at women’s ministry retreats and other events. I’ve been busy preparing for upcoming events both locally and in other states. I’ll be in Pennsylvania and Nebraska next month and look forward to speaking on relationships in the church and the fear of the Lord, respectively.

I have a new position in women’s ministries at my local church: co-coordinator. Our women’s ministry team is headed up by an older and a younger woman. In case you were wondering, I am the older woman of our duo. I’m excited to serve my church in this way. In addition, over the past year I’ve been working with my pastor on developing a counseling ministry to women in crisis. We’re hoping to launch it sometime soon.

How about you? What has your summer been like?

Sixteen Years of Blogging

This month marks sixteen years since I started blogging. It’s crazy to think how long its been!

I still remember the day I created my first blog. My oldest was a baby and during one of his naptimes, I came across an article in a parenting magazine about this new thing called web-logs. People were writing online about their daily life for others to read. The article suggested a couple of free blogging sites. I selected one and published my first post.

The first couple of years, I shared photos and brief stories about my son. I documented many of his “firsts” and wrote about our daily life. My readers consisted of mostly friends and family who enjoyed the pictures I posted. Periodically, I would share about something God was teaching me. I wrote about my struggles with depression. I wrote devotional pieces. I shared parenting insights and thoughts on motherhood. The more I did so, the more people would comment and say, “that resonated with me.” In the process, I rediscovered a love of writing I had forgotten about, one I set aside to focus on school and career.

I soon got to know other bloggers and joined various blogging communities of like-minded writers. I also started writing for other blogs, then ministry websites and publications. Through consistent posting, I found my writing voice. I discovered that writing was the perfect combination of my counseling training and my love of theology.

Blogging has changed significantly since the first day I hit, “publish.” Many people I once knew through blogging have long since stopped posting on their blogs. Some have switched to “micro-blogging” on Instagram instead. People interact with me more on social media now than in the comments. I also don’t blog as often as I once did. And over the years, the topics I write about has changed as I’ve aged and moved through different seasons of life.

Despite all these changes, I still believe in blogging. I still encourage the writers I mentor to have a blog. I believe it is important for readers to have a place to find writers. Blogs are like a writer’s home where readers come to visit. A blog also provides a writer freedom to experiment, practice, and stretch in their writing. And it’s a great place to develop a topic or idea over time that might eventually grow into something bigger, like an article or book.

Anniversaries are important times to look back and see how far one has come. Of reflecting on lessons one has learned and marveling at God’s faithfulness. I can certainly testify to all the things I have learned these past sixteen years of blogging and writing. It’s amazing to consider all the experiences I’ve had, people I’ve met, and places I’ve written. I had no idea when I posted that first photo and wrote about what my son did that day in June of 2005, what the Lord would do through my blogging.

What about you? Have you ever blogged?

Quarantine: Two Months In

Our family has been homebound since the beginning of March. Two months of staying at home. Two months of social distancing. Two months of this new way of doing life.

In previous posts, I shared some of the disappointments, laments, and thoughts I’ve had during these weeks. Today, I thought I’d do something different and just share what I’ve been up to during quarantine. Granted, nothing too exciting has happened, but I find it interesting to hear what other people are up to, perhaps you do too?

Much Remains the Same

The past two months have found me doing a lot of what I would normally do: keeping up with household chores, cooking, supervising my children and their schoolwork, writing, and other ministry related tasks. Some of these normal tasks have grown though. For example, my husband typically travels each week for work so the kids and I don’t make a big deal about meals. Since we have all been at home, I’ve been cooking A LOT! And running the dishwasher! I actually enjoy cooking so I’ve tried new recipes, made some I haven’t made in a long time (blueberry zucchini bread is a family favorite), and even developed a habit of writing out a menu—two weeks worth at a time.

Our church has kept all the same activities and ministries going, just virtually, so I’ve participated in Bible study and small group. My kids remain involved with youth group through virtual prayer and Bible study and weekly youth group gatherings online.

Enjoying the Simple Things

Having to stay at home has certainly afforded me time to enjoy simple things. I’ve taken many walks and hikes. I’ve had lengthy quiet times with the Lord each morning. I’ve enjoy reading books, both fiction and non-fiction. One of my current reads is Help[H]er: A Churchwide Response for Women in Crisis, a book on crisis care ministry in the church. Spring is a favorite time of year and I’ve enjoyed watching spring unfold in all her splendor.

New Projects and Opportunities

One of my mom-isms that I have my children repeat to me out loud is “When God gives you extra time, use it wisely.” With my extra time these past two months, I completed two books projects. One is a book and study on the fear of the Lord. You can read a post inspired by it here. The other is a children’s book. You’ll hear more about that in coming months. I’m excited to see how the Lord will use both of these projects.

At my church, a few of us who are counselors started virtual support groups to help fellow church members think through and process all their emotions and uncertainties during this time. I’ve led one on lament and have found it mutually encouraging. I’ve loved digging back in to the Psalms and walking through the laments with my sisters in Christ.

I’m a wannabe creative and one day hope to learn to draw and paint. A group of ladies at my church meets each week to work on projects together. The past few weeks, I’ve joined in on their virtual calls to see what they’ve been creating. The only creative thing I’ve done during quarantine is a few black-out poems, which I shared with the group. I find these poems both challenging and relaxing at the same time and hope to do more of them.

Family Matters

I’ve enjoyed watching my kids navigate this strange and upside down in history. They’ve taken up working out together—strength training and running. We found an opportunity for them to train for a virtual marathon as well. They enjoy connecting with their friends via video conferencing and my youngest has set up a green screen to make fun backgrounds during his calls. They complain of boredom from time to time, but overall are doing better than I expected. It helps that they have plenty of school work to keep them busy.

Our family loves to laugh together and we’ve had plenty of time to do that these past two months. We’ve also played the board game, Pandemic, which I thought was a fitting game to play. It’s a bit complicated to learn, but I like that you play as a group. Each player works together to help stop the spread of viral outbreaks. One evening, we played some games virtually with another family via video conferencing. It was hilarious!

We’ve also been watching Tim Challies’ new video documentary series, Epic: An Around-the-World Journey through Christian History. We love history and have read many biographies of missionaries over the years. Tim’s journey around the world takes him to many of the places we’ve read about. It’s fascinating and a great activity to enjoy as a family. We’ve also been reading The Hiding Place together as a family. You can read some of my thoughts about it here.

So, that about sums up what I’ve been up to. How about you?

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Favorite Books on Writing

I recently returned from the annual PCA Women’s ministry Leadership Conference where I facilitated our fifth writer’s event. (I love when things like that become a tradition!) Each year, the event has been different. We’ve explored and highlighted different aspects of writing, including growing as a writer, writing different genres, blogging, and publishing.

Each year we’ve had a variety of different women participate in a panel discussion. I love these panels because we get to hear from women of all ages and stages, both in life and in writing. We learn from those who write Bible studies and those who write fiction. We hear stories from both new and seasoned authors. We talk about the Christian’s purpose and goal in writing. And we receive encouragement to keep moving forward in our writing, one word at a time.

In thinking about our panel discussion from this year, I thought it might be helpful to share some of my favorite books on writing. I’ve collected a number of books over the years, including books on writing poetry and non-fiction, books on the craft of writing, books on the mechanics and grammar of writing, as well as writing memoirs from various authors.

I received C. S. Lewis and the Art of Writing: What the Essayist, Poet, Novelist, Literary Critic, Apologist, Memoirist, Theologian Teaches Us about the Life and Craft of Writing for my birthday one year and it is a treasure! I savored it, reading it slowly, one chapter at a time. This book looks at the creative life of C.S. Lewis and reveals his growth as a writer, his struggles in writing, and his writing process. It is both fascinating biography and inspiration for writers. The end of each chapter contains a writing exercise to implement and practice what was discussed in the chapter.

On Writing Well: The Classic Guide to Writing Nonfiction is a classic every writer should have on their shelf. In his straight forward, no nonsense way, Zinsser provides practical tips on how to improve and sharpen one's writing. I also highly recommend his other books, such as Writing About Your Life, Writing Places, and American Places.

The Elements of Style, Fourth Edition is a small handbook on the mechanics of writing, including punctuation, sentence structure, and even commonly misused words and phrases. If you've forgotten what you learned in high school English class, you'll want this book on hand.

Eats, Shoots & Leaves: The Zero Tolerance Approach to Punctuation is a fun way to learn about punctuation. The author is British, so there is some difference in how we use punctuation in the US, but she points out those differences. Punctuation does matter, and unless you are a grammarian who loves the rules of the English language, you may forget some of the finer rules. This is a great little book to add to your writing library.

Many authors have written memoirs about their writing and their creative process. Writing is an isolating and solo activity. I find it helpful to read about an author's process, what inspires them, how they keep moving forward, as well as the barriers they've faced in their writing. When I can't sit with a fellow writer and talk shop, I enjoy reading writing memoirs, such as this one by Madeleine L'Engle: Walking on Water: Reflections on Faith and Art. Here's a favorite quote: "the chief difference between the Christian and the secular artist--the purpose of the work, be it story or music or painting, is to futher the coming of the kingdom, to make us aware of our status as children of God, and to turn our feet toward home." Another good one is Letters and Life: On Being a Writer, On Being a Christian, by Bret Lott.

The last book I will share is not a book on writing at all, but it's a book I always recommend to writers: The Freedom of Self Forgetfulness: The Path to True Christian Joy. Writing involves some challenging things for writers to navigate, including both affirmation and rejection, the uncomfortable feeling writers have in marketing one's writing, receiving critique and criticism, and much more. This short book by Tim Keller grounds writers in the truth of who we are in Christ and what God thinks of us. It is good heart preparation for all that writing entails.

These are just a few of my favorite writing books on my shelf. How about you?

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