suffering Archives

Poetry

Setting your mind

Setting your mind I am setting my mind I am focusing my course I have a direct line of focus It is my human choice You go your way You make your plans I’m heading for a different place A divine dance in their hands I have a mindset Magnetic […]

Faith & Mental Health

Is This Punishment from God?

I haven’t lived a perfect life, and I wonder if my problems are punishment from God, but maybe I don’t know the whole story and that God is overflowingly full of grace and mercy. They wanted retribution. Payback. A desire for revenge coursed through their veins for what had happened […]

Faith & Mental Health

The Plans God Has For You

Midst the struggle you wonder about the plans God has for you. I thought it was all about prosperity, but this is far from that. Some things don’t make sense. It wasn’t meant to be like this. I didn’t see this as my future. How did I get here? Questions […]

"A person looking out toward a vast, soft-lit sky or sitting in a reflective pose, symbolizing the search for divine love."

Getting Well Staying Well

Does God Hate Me?

One tough moment after another can bring you to the question, ‘Does God hate me’? But I want to know more, so I sit with those at the coal face and grow in my knowing. No one knows coal like a coal miner. I could go to a scientist and […]

Getting Well Staying Well Spiritual Formation

Why Was I Even Born?

When you’ve hit the brick wall, the question may arise. Why was I even born? But over time, new depth may come through. A new birth may evolve. I want you to imagine that you have a bungee cord tied around your waist. You are flying through the air, and […]

Getting Well Staying Well

Shall we accept good from God, and not trouble?

We are happy to accept good from God, but what about trouble? There is something deeper available when we center on clinging to God. As a gardener, I work in all kinds of weather. Rain, sun, and wind – both light and strong. In the extremes, I complain. The furnace […]

Faith & Mental Health

When they say ‘Curse God and Die’

People can say some harsh things to us, but when someone close says ‘Curse God and Die’ you have to go to a deeper place of faith than they possibly have. I was watching him wilt. He was once like a flourishing plant, enjoying water and sun and growing and […]

Getting Well Staying Well

How is it With Your Soul?

It can be so easy to lose hope. But when we ask, ‘How is it with your soul?’ an opportunity opens to journey to know wellness. ‘How are you?’ they asked. My response was polite, and I said that I was okay. They repeated the question. They wanted to know […]

Anxiety & Stress

Is The Load Too Heavy? Watch With Me

The load we carry can get too heavy, and we can breakdown. But we can grow through it when we have others who will watch with us. I needed help. I vividly remember the day I rang emergency services. I had come to a point where I knew I couldn’t […]