November 2010
13 posts
Praying for Wings (literally)
Tonight London prayed, “God, please give me wings so I can fly like a little butterfly.”
This was the first time she’d ever made any sort of request of God. We usually only thank and praise Him. The big ask was her idea. I guess she figured He was the go-to person for a thing like being able to fly with butterfly wings. She’s starting to imagine what He’s capable...
One Last Word on Divorce
You know how when you’re about to say something ever-so-slightly racist you preface it with the self-excusing phrase: “I have good friends who’re…”? Well, I sort of feel like I should end my series on marriage with a variant on that:
I have good friends who’re divorced.
I say that because I don’t want, in all the talk on healthy marriages, to somehow...
What's Riding on Your Marriage? More Than You...
When Justin and I lived in Brooklyn we were constantly making friends with single atheists. Which only makes sense as NYC is full of single people with no religious affiliation.
As we spent more and more time with our new found friends, they almost always noticed two things. The first had something to do with a Christian stereotype. They’d say, intending a compliment, “I had no idea...
The Power of "I Forgive You"
When Justin and I were newly weds, we struggled with apologies. I’d stammer out the words “I’m sorry” and he’d mutter, “It’s no big deal.” Or “It’s okay.” Or “No problem.” But then we’d still be a little upset. I’d still feel guilty and he’d still feel frustrated.
It seems to me that responding to an...
Marriage: The Place Where the Leaves Come Off
Human beings are so vulnerable. I think of Adam and Eve in the garden trying to cover their shame with leaves. We’re all like that, doing all we can to hide the imperfect parts of our fragile selves.
For that reason, marriage is scary. It’s the place where the leaves come off.
I had a friend in college who was petrified of the thought that her husband might want to have sex with the...
Happily Married Doesn't Mean Perfect
I am happily married. I love my husband ridiculously. Given the choice, I cannot imagine a single person with whom I’d rather do anything. We date every week. I doodle his name in hearts on our family calendar. For goodness sake, we have a love book—a journal for writing love letters back and forth.
Because the above things are true, we sometimes make our friends gag. In fact, far...
One Thing You Can't Say Out Loud
Here’s one thing you can’t say at church: “I love being married.”
Honestly, you probably can’t say it anywhere, because if you say it, here are the inevitable responses:
“Gag me.”
“Guess you haven’t had your first fight.”
“Let’s talk again in ten years.”
“(a sarcasm laden) Suuuuure.”
It’s because...
Being the Woman I Want My Daughters to Be
Yesterday I watched my almost three year old sleep. I sat on my bed (her favorite place for napping) and stared. Stared at her hands, her long fingers, the dirt under her fingernails. Stared at her perfect, scrunched face, her thin, pale hair falling across her closed eyes. She seemed, in the moment, to age, like a time-lapse sequence in a movie, so that suddenly she was a woman, my tall,...
Wake up, wake up!
Last night, reading about prayer, I came across this from the poet Kabir:
“Do you have a body? Don’t sit on the porch!
Go out and walk in the rain!
If you are in love,
then why are you asleep?
Wake up, wake up!”
The suggestion is that prayer isn’t only about saying; it’s about doing, about living.
That to thank God for our health, for our strong bodies, is best...
The Grace of God
Andy Stanley’s newest book, The Grace of God, is beautiful. But how could it be anything else?
Sometimes when I read a book I’m impressed with the author. Other times I’m just bowled over by new, exciting ideas. Not with this book—There isn’t much new or extraordinarily artistic or creative here. Instead, I crawled up inside truths I’ve known since childhood,...
Be Like Mike
I watched a highlight reel today of Michael Jordan’s career. As I watched those clips I remembered sitting beside my brother on a long vinyl couch in my grandfather’s living room, both of us glued to the TV screen, rooting on the invincible Chicago Bulls.
I remember that moment in the finals when Jordan couldn’t miss a three point shot, when he ran down the court after his...
Why Campaign Clutter Irks Me
Our church serves the community on election day as an official polling station. Which is great, a natural opportunity to reach out to the people around our building.
Still, it irked me today to drive by and see all those campaign posters like flamingos preening on the lawn.
For months we’ve heard candidates offer up “solutions” to all our problems, explain away the thornier...
Too Many
This semester (or season of life) I’m teaching an online section of comp II, I’m co-facilitating (primarily in the form of writing “curriculum”) an adult Bible class, I’m serving as the primary care giver for two preschool aged girls (mine), and I’m working as partner/helper/consultant for my preacher husband (as I always do). It’s also my turn to take...
