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The practice of listening.

"It takes time and practice to learn to listen. And it takes a caring heart. A fourth-grade teacher once asked her class, "What is listening?" After a few moments of silence, one little girl raised her hand. "Listening," she said, "is wanting to hear." Lord, make us a people who want to hear." Janet Dunn, Desiring God. I love learning and I admit that I am somewhat of a self-help junkie. A friend once said to me, "You have to start reading something fun!" It didn't sound interesting, but she was right. This same friend is a great listener. When I sounded off about trouble in my heart about my relationship with my mom, she offered kind and loving advice. What was that advice? That I needed to seek the help of a counselor. Inside, I rolled my eyes. Really? Again? I've gone this route before, aren't I done? But I went forward with her advice.  I connected with a counselor, a caring soul, a beautiful listener. With her by my s

Beauty in a Box

  The work of a floral designer can be perceived as dreamy and romantic. The truth is, it’s really not like that at all.  It’s a satisfying form of creativity and just like any other art form, a great deal happens before the “beautiful” emerges. What isn’t seen is the messy process that precedes the beautiful outcome. If you’ve ever worked in a floral shop, you know what I mean. Flowers arrive to a shop packed in boxes. They are strategically and protectively arranged to protect and preserve them from damage while in transit. If mishandled, flowers can be bruised. The job of the floral designer begins here. The goal? To carefully unpack the flowers and transfer them to another safe place, a cylinder container filled with fresh water. Before the stems are submerged in water though, essential things need to happen. As the flowers are unpacked, the stems are cleaned, then given a generous new cut. This is done so that when they’re put in a bucket of water, they can “drink up”. The new

A magical way to get rid of wrinkles...

I don’t like wrinkles. Lucky for me, my clothes dryer has a nice feature on it called wrinkle prevent. Once the original drying cycle is complete and the dryer stops drying, the wrinkle prevent feature kicks on. This feature is intended to prevent wrinkles from settling into the clothing. Within a few moments, the dryer powers up again and tosses the clothing inside around and around with the goal to keep them wrinkle-free. The dryer continues this intermittent process for a very long time.   The magical intent of this feature helps me when I know I won’t have the chance to empty the dryer once the cycle is complete. It’s a feature I use often. However, while this feature is really nice, I’ve noticed that it doesn’t completely deliver on its promise. Some wrinkles still happen. Perhaps not as badly as they could if left sitting in a heap for hours, but still, they are there. I can choose to live with the wrinkles or try to smooth them out. One takes work, the other not so much. It give

A Silly Little Prayer

Years ago, for the very first time, I read the gardening section of the newspaper. I found myself attracted to an article about hummingbirds. According to the article, it was hummingbird season and time to keep an eye out for these tiny creatures. Fascinated with the information, I found it hard to believe that hummingbirds existed in my corner of the world. I had seen them in movies or TV specials, but never in person. And so, I sent a short, simple prayer up to Heaven. “I would love to see a hummingbird, Lord.” I forgot about my prayer until a few days later. I was admiring the flowers I had planted outside my door. I planted beautiful impatiens that spilled out of two large terra cotta pots. I was excited with the results, excited because the flowers actually grew! I was pleasantly surprised with my beginner’s luck. Suddenly, without warning, a tiny, green bird flitted magnetically to my flowers. I had to take a second look. Was it a hummingbird? I wasn’t sure. I kept look

Frustrated or fulfilled?

Discovering how God created you leads to living your  purpose and mission with strength. Frustrated or Fulfilled?  That was the question I heard on a radio program years ago, and it caused me to stop and think. At the time, I wondered…which am I and why am I feeling this way? Admittedly, I was both. Frustrated because I knew there was more and oddly, at the same time, content with the status quo. But that little frustration part was bugging me. Why was I frustrated? When I thought about feeling frustrated, it wasn’t in the material sense. Rather, it was a persistent sense of knowing that there was more to life. Could there be more? Was the best yet to come? And yes, of course, Heaven is the ultimate “best to come,” but how do you get to that “more” in the everyday? How do you get to a point of relishing each day instead of just trying to get through it? I am reminded of the lyrics in Steven Curtis Chapman’s song,  More to This Life . In it he sings, “Make the most of your own journey f

Inside Out Transformations

The email was from retail icon, Lord + Taylor. The subject line simply said, “All Stores Closing…”. For most, this will not be a big deal. For me, it was a startling read because this is the place my father diligently worked as a tailor for over twenty years.   This is where our family's bread and butter came from.   And even though my father has been retired now for many years, it’s really an end of so many things that symbolize the work of his hands. From an early age, I was surrounded by fabric. Physical fabric, but more importantly the fabric of hard work, the fabric of dedication, and the fabric of learning what quality looks like.   So, when I saw the email from Lord + Taylor, my heart sank. I took his skills for granted. When I shopped, I could buy an article of clothing that didn’t fit me properly, knowing with confidence he could transform it. Magically.   And it did seem like magic because he would measure and fit me and within a few days, the altered garment was read

Finding Life Among the Living

I recently clipped a flowering branch off a tree in our yard.   I thought I could keep it blooming so that I could take a photo of it.   Within minutes, cut away from the branch and without water, it wilted.   The photo opportunity faded. The beauty of the branch was gone as the life it held evaporated.   And so, it is with us.   Can we truly live if we are cut off from the vine?   If we are separated from God, where do we go to get life?   Where do we go to stay alive?   To have breath and to live in the splendor and truth of how we’ve been created ?    The blooms on the branch looked radiant while attached to the tree.   The collective display was grand, a picture of its purpose.   It reflected beauty, grace and God’s glory in nature. Then I looked at the wilted branch I had collected and the flowers on it. They were dead. In Luke 24:1-7, we read about the women who went to Jesus’ tomb and when they arrived, found the tomb empty. … very early on Sunday morning t

Blooming in the Gray

Blooming in the Gray by Re Kielar A few months ago, I made a huge decision. I decided to retire.   I use the word retired, loosely because I truly feel I have more of me to give in life.   The problem is, I just don’t know exactly what that is.   In January, after undergoing shoulder surgery, I was certain I’d be back to work and slide easily back into place.   Nope.   Not a chance.   The recovery time period was never really explained to me (maybe I wasn’t paying close attention), so I was propelled home after an unsuccessful return to my job.   I found the rest I needed at home, and after more time passed, I finally felt ready for a second attempt to return to work. I was all in.   Sort of.   Something in me was stirring and I wasn’t sure what it was.   I shared my thoughts I had with my husband and he matter-of-factly said a few words that seemed to set me free.   “Stay home,” he said.   I almost asked him to say it again, but I didn’t chance it.   Instead, I cried a str

Write your personal mission statement!

Write your mission statement! In my last post, I talked about purpose.  More specifically, I talked about creating the foundation of your purpose by writing a personal mission statement for your life.  I realize this may sound daunting to some of you, but let's review the benefits of this exercise.  If you had time to consider your spiritual gifts, knowing what those are can be a great help to help you form your mission statement.  Your personal mission statement will: Validate your gifts. Give you direction on what you will and will not do in life. Be an inspiration to yourself, and it will inspire others as they see you working through the gifts God gave you. Give you freedom and clarity, enabling you to live through your God given gifts. Where do you begin? Set aside time for prayer.  Ask God to show you your gifts and talents. Write down moments in your life when you were doing something and you felt most alive. Take note of those moments as they