A Letter to Pastors: On Adversity, Silence, & Us

Dear pastor, Please: will you tell the church what happened? I'm not asking that you share an entire sermon about it. And I'm not asking you to get up on stage and declare any political or polarizing opinions. That isn't what this is about; it isn't what so much of this has been about. I…

On Refugees: A Poem & A Few Ways to Help

I could have been you. I could have entered the world at war, Could have seen horrors that echo, Could have known nothing but danger and the desperation for escape. But, somehow, I'm me. I'm not where you are, Don't understand suffering the way you do, Don't know what it's like to be hated in…

How I’m Replacing My Anxiety: On Power, Positivity, & Choices

When I picked up a dingy little book at a yard sale for a few cents, it was simply because the title seemed interesting to me: "Feel The Fear and Do It Anyway." I was struggling with questions about anxiety and how big a role it played in my life, so much so that it was…

When Peace Doesn’t Feel Close (A Climax in My Anxiety Story)

Their words had become daggers; I felt them in my chest, poking at my insecurities and fears. My lungs then began to empty of their air. The anxiety that was so familiar to me and that had been lurking behind me every day squeezed my lungs to increase the pang of the sharp wounds I was now hosting. I got alone just in…

On Struggling & Peace

I don't usually like telling the stories behind my artwork. Often I want to, but then I remember a friend who told me about a piece of mine that connected a few dots for her. What she gained from it was not at all what I'd meant in those brushstrokes, but it was just as meaningful. I don't…

A Prayer Against The Spirit of Fear

Father, the spirit of fear is filling so many. You have not given it to us, it is not from you. You have given us power. I pray that we use this power, that we reflect you-- who you are, how you love, the heart you have for your children. We are family, Lord. Your…

Learning From The Everyday

One of my favorite words lately has been "life." I think because I'm starting to see life as an adventure instead of something terrifying and unknown, my heart has begun to soften and open a little more toward whatever comes with life. And that fact makes me smile at random points in the day, because that…