Category: Empowered

Transplant Trauma...

4/25/2018

A few weeks ago, I transplanted one of my patio plants called “ZZ” (Zamioculcas zamiifolia) which has been “growing like a weed” and getting totally out of control in size and shape. As I researched how to separate and transplant it into 2 pots, I discovered that according to the online “care instructions” my plant should not have thrived like it did. The first thing I did wrong is to water my plants weekly and much to my surprise, according to the instructions, it should only be watered once a month. Secondly, my patio faces the south therefore it has direct sunlight every day of the year with very little shade. Apparently that is not the correct environment for growing this type of plant either. Maybe if I had followed the proper instructions, I would not have had to transplant the darn thing. Be that as it may, it certainly was a bugger to separate into two because of the extensive root system. After a lot of grunting, pulling and threatening to cut it with a knife, I managed to get it separated into two plants and then potted with fresh soil. After giving them a good shot of water, the waiting begins to see how they will react to the transplant trauma of being separated and transplanted.

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Art of Repairing Brokenness

11/1/2016

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Last week my friends and I were discussing the line between brokenness and becoming whole. The word “broken” has been used especially in faith-based circles to describe the hurts, pain, betrayals and really any issues that have affected our lives negatively. I can very easily identify with how the word sometimes describes a broken spirit, broken heart, broken confidence and so on. We are all broken at some point in our lives and we can even go in and out of those times of struggle in our lives. So when my friend Lou looked at me and said, “You are whole” it caught me off guard. He said it twice as he looked me straight in the eyes. What did wholeness or being made whole really look like? Honestly I haven’t given much thought about how the spirit of brokenness is mended and is once again restored to full capacity. Yes I have spent quite a bit of time, in the recent years, identifying the broken pieces of my past experiences and have worked to rewrite my story, however I just haven’t thought about fixing all of those pieces to make them whole.

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The Heat of the Flame…

5/16/2016

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“Hey girls, what is Pentecost?” Both of my daughters looked at me with a blank stare and said they had no idea. I looked at them as if they had grown two heads and asked, “What do you mean you don’t know what Pentecost is?” This made no sense to me. “How can you learn anything about the church in confirmation if you don’t know how the whole process started?” Sara, my oldest, would be getting confirmed in a few months and she had no knowledge of what this very important Christian day was about? How could that be? Well, at that moment the mom in me took over and made the decision to change that mistake right then and there. My girls were going to learn about Pentecost and much, much more if it took the rest of their lives. I bought notebooks, pens and each week gave them a scripture text to read and dissect with notes about what they were reading. My girls were going to know the Bible and the importance of Pentecost if it killed me. You can imagine how well that went over and how long it lasted. We laugh and joke about it now but I was dead serious at the time. I felt I had failed as a mother and as a Christian!

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Trust Me. Trust Me.

5/9/2016

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I am standing on a precipice,
looking out over the vague gray rolling fog.
The world below is hidden from my eyes.
The rock on which I stand is secure and strong.
The blanket mist is soft and limitless.
The distant light warms me.
The sky above is azure and bright.
The glow of the light reflects its brilliance overhead.

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To Please or Not to Please

3/28/2016

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Sometimes I just can’t get it right! Have you ever felt that way? No matter how confident I am in my decisions, someone always thinks they know a better way to do it. Recently, I was reminded of an old fable that addresses this very issue. It is a cute story that expresses a moral ending that reminds me to just be true to me and trust that I have made the best decision possible with the information at my disposal. Here is the story…

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Taking the Step...

3/21/2016

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Last week I officially entered into the candidacy for pastoral ministry. In the United Methodist Church, this is titled, Provisional Elder. The process will require more education, a great deal of writing, a number of interviews and continued discernment for where God is leading me. I have completed the first step by writing my statement of call and sharing it with the District Superintendent for his recommendation to the larger conference governing body. I want to share my statement because it has been a long road to get to this place of understanding my pastoral role in ministry

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Stand Up and Walk

3/7/2016

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Following graduation from seminary, my academic dean suggested that I spend several months interning as a chaplain. Shortly thereafter I moved to Colorado Springs to enroll in the chaplaincy program. Being a chaplain at a large Catholic hospital gave me new insight into the difference between curing and healing. This particular hospital intentionally focused on healing the whole person rather than curing a particular illness. This meant, as chaplains, it was expected that we would ask patients who were battling cancer, heart issues and those facing death, tough questions about finding hope in their circumstances. I remember one particular guy, Mac, who had just been told that he had 4 months or less to live. My first visit to his room happened shortly after he had received this devastating news. When asked about where he found hope in this news, he began to cry. He told me expecting him to find hope in his death was a tough question. As a new chaplain, I was unsure of how to react to his tears. Inside I panicked because it felt like I had been insensitive to his overwhelming news and I didn’t know how to fix it for him. Together we were able to work through his tears and engage in a number of heart-felt conversations about his family, his faith and his health. Within a week he was discharged to a care facility and I never saw him again.

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Meeting on the Bench...

2/15/2016

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Recently I saw a post on Facebook that pictured an empty park bench with the question, “if you could sit on the bench with someone and have a conversation, who would it be?” In my mind, I went through a list of people including my mom; world leaders, prophets, presidents and celebrities but I didn’t choose any of them. As a Christian, I suppose the obvious answer should be Jesus or God but I don’t like being that predictable, however fascinating they would be. In the end, I would like to sit and have a conversation with the Samaritan woman from the Gospel of John. I think she is fascinating.

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Do You Love Yourself As Much As You Love Others?

1/11/2016

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Throughout my life I have tried to live into the biblical text to, ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.” (Mark 12:31) The Old and New Testaments indicate the importance of the loving God first then love our neighbor as we love ourselves. I have read this text so many times that it has become an automatic response when I see injustice and/or prejudices. Until now, I haven’t really stopped to think about what God is actually requiring us to do.

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Change Your Voice

11/2/2015

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There is a long history of mental, emotional and spiritual abuse in my life, which has taken me years to work through and rise above. I have always struggled with identifying my value as a woman given the long history of choices, circumstances and experiences grounded in abuse. Moving away from the negative influence of these relationships requires a new perspective.

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Transplant Trauma...

Art of Repairing Brokenness

The Heat of the Flame…

Trust Me. Trust Me.

To Please or Not to Please

Taking the Step...

Stand Up and Walk

Meeting on the Bench...

Do You Love Yourself As Much As You Love Others?

Change Your Voice

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