A Blurred Reflection

Tag: encouragement

  • If my hike had a soundtrack…

    The air was the perfect flavor of pine and clean wind as I sauntered along the smooth, shaded path past Lake Hebron that warm-but-not-too-warm day. The loons cried their short-lived daytime conversation and a bandana’d youth sat contemplatively underneath a fir tree, watching the reflection of clouds sweep across the slightly rippled water. His iPod played…

  • Courage

    Isn’t it crazy that even when everything I know and see is on the downstream side of insanity, just hanging on to hope by a thread, Jesus’ name is STILL ‘Deliverer’? Even when I feel like a skittering mouse, MY name, because of my divine heritage, is STILL ‘Courageous Victor’? I’ve thought to myself, “Maybe I’ll find a…

  • Independence Day, All Day, Errry Day

    Do you know what it’s like to be free? Does it feel like a triumphant march, bold, brazen and unstoppable? Does it feel like an entirely new government, a government that actually has your best interest in mind? Does it feel like a fireworks show, loud, colorful and unpredictable? Maybe just a tad dangerous? Does…

  • It’s Gonna Be OK

    Ever have those days when you just want to sock yourself in the face? You’ve tried so hard to do the right thing, to be that person you want yourself to be, but in the end you crashed miserably and burned a whole pile of people in the process. All the time and effort you’ve put…

  • But He Always Offers Rest

    2 weeks ago, I was part of an amazing scouting adventure in the Florida Everglades. A recon. Research, networking, exploration and a harvesting of as many Glades skills as we could scavenge. My co-guides and I all knew it would be, to borrow the favorite expression of my friend Kathy, a very “interesting situation”. New adventures…

  • That Bum On My Couch

    I was in the second-to-front pew at church the other week, and I was feeling the morning blues. Do you know what I mean? That sandy-eyed, groggy-voiced, brain-not-quite-awake feeling of sluggishness that isn’t really ready for 120 decibels of worship music being emanated directly in front of oneself. Don’t get me wrong, the band was great. I…

  • Innumerable Gifts

      Recently, most people have been asking me the “What next?” question. You know the one. The one where it’s incredibly awkward to say, “Well, I plan to study, write, do some renovations and work out. That’s it.” Why me? Why is my path so full of “What if?” and “What next?”s? Why do I love doing…

  • What I learned about Jesus from the Ironman Triathlon

    Think about what it means to be strong in the Lord, and tell me what you see. I always knew better in my mind, but when push came to shove I used to believe that God wanted macho, 6-pack body-builders of the faith. The ones who overcame all odds by pure determination. Somehow, I switched out the word…

  • Pain is Holy

    “I was on tour, and a friend who was on tour with me went through a really rough valley. She experienced a miscarriage. I was with her the day after, and I asked her how she was…. what was going on for her inside. She said, “You know, the only words that keep rising up in…

  • Love Ambush

    I’ve been a crab for twenty-four hours. It all started when someone asked me a question, and I responded defensively and then the father of lies jumped in with all of his hogwash and made a mess of everything. “You’re not worth fighting for.” he said, “You are selfish at the core, and think of…