Birthday, Anniversary, Election, and Know-vember
Recent weeks have been a beautiful blur of church renovation, my birthday, our 34th wedding anniversary, and an election that has me walking around perpetually outside my comfort zone.
Seems my brain really craves clarity, y’all.
My faith family has been one of the few steady constant realities in an unsteady year. I mean, I knew when I sat down way back the first week of January to seek the Lord, that I was not getting the feeling that this was going to be “my best year yet”. I was not getting the sense {at. all.} that the coming four quarters were going to be full of roses and rainbows and one wild success after another.
Yet, in a way, it has been the best year. The whole world, in pretty much one day, has figured out that small church is far from small thinking. Everyone has figured out that home schooling mamas are freaking superheroes (you’re welcome, grown children). Everyone has figured out that running a business online is super-smart, and that gathering in person is the most important thing we forgot we needed.
it has been at the very least, for me, a year full of a dear daughter’s dahlias, a double rainbow at a backyard pandemic wedding, and two sold-out art collections. “Roses”, rainbows, and one wild success after another after all. Oh, and the addition of nine chickens and one very handsome, ornery rooster.
And death and taxes and a brown recluse spider bite. Well played, 2020.
Meet Cogburn the rooster. He lives at my daughter Hannah’s house (next door). He’s moody, but we chalk that up to puberty.
So here we are, almost mid-November. And some would say, in terms of election results, pandemic projections, and whether a bandana over your nose and mouth literally saves lives, that we all have very little clarity.
I can’t let this year pass without one token picture of my life-saving pink Belgian linen mask. When I first got it, I felt upscale. Sort of like when I buy a shirt from Anthro instead of Target. But now it is November, my give a damn is busted, and I may cut up some of the Preacher’s old t-shirts.
Can I tell you where I am finding clarity?
I’m doing a study, in the Bible, of the word “know”.
Friends, there are some things we can know.
“For we know that when this earthly tent we live in is taken down (that is, when we die and leave this earthly body), we will have a house in heaven, an eternal body made for us by God himself and not by human hands.”
“We know that we have passed from death to life, because we love the brethren.”
“For this reason, even though I suffer as I do, I am not ashamed; for I know whom I have believed, and I am convinced that He is able to guard what I have entrusted to Him for that day.”
There is still lots of clarity to be had. In fact, getting clear on what matters most is creating clarity in every area of my life.
Turns out, hindsight is NOT 2020. Insight is. Spiritual insight is everything.
Middle Missive {...a "missive" is just a letter, and in this case a love letter...}
Two years ago tonight, as a woman in my 50’s, God placed Milan and Bellagio, Italy under my feet:
I had never picked up a paintbrush until I was well past 45 - closer to 50. Yet there I was, in Italy, to minister to women through teaching art.
It all began with faithfully chasing creative inspiration - not someone else and her ideas, not an MLM company (they’re fine - calm down), not diving deep into all my trauma, symptoms and pain, both physical and emotional.
I waited for my Kindler, and He showed up. He always does. And when He does, He comes bearing gifts.
““When he ascended on high, he took many captives and gave gifts to his people.” ”
Dear Middle-Artist,
All art is heaven’s way of staging a gentle invasion. Be alert to song. Be alert to poetry. Be alert to color. Be alert to texture and form and sculpture and a word fitly spoken. Know this: what moves you, and the way it moves you will always (always!) be right on time. Investigate further.
(And oh, I just dropped such wisdom on you! I just handed you flint and steel, my friend. Now go kindle something beautiful!)