My one small step to peace-making
God blesses those who work for peace for they will be called children of God. Matthew 5:9 The 9/11 terrorist attack was still fresh in people’s minds, an open wound that was reluctant to heal. People perceived to be Arab, and certainly Muslim women wearing hijabs, were the targets of all kinds of verbal abuse and sometimes physical. A Somali-American acquaintance of mine recalls having garbage thrown at her and her family as the attackers shouted, “Go back to Saudi Arabia!” An American friend, a Microsoft executive who is originally from...
read moreNot Intuitive
But now that you have been set free from sin and have become slaves of God, the benefit you reap leads to holiness, and the result is eternal life. Romans 6:22 NIV I love oxymorons. Learned professor. Military intelligence. Jumbo shrimp. Small crowd. Old news. Open secret. Deafening silence. Pretty ugly. Awfully good. Free slave. Freedom by submission. Wait a minute. Where did that last come from? Freedom by submission? You may know what I’m talking about. This is one of our distinctively Christian oxymorons. The way of...
read moreTaking Care of the Temple
Do you not know that your bodies are temples of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God? 1 Corinthians 6:19a NIV (Abigail, our beloved former blog editor and so much more, now lives in Florida.) When I was in my early 20s, I could go out until 2AM on a weeknight and still get to work by 9 the next morning. By the time I turned 30, I realized I had to be responsible, but as long as I kept to a reasonable schedule, my body was fine. Now that I’m almost 40(!) and have gone through two pregnancies, my body is starting to...
read moreLiving In The Now
Therefore, do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own. Matthew 6:34 NIV This is a difficult verse to follow lately. While tomorrow will worry about itself, it seems that the days are blurring together, and it is becoming increasingly worrisome to think about both the present and future. In the last month and a half, we have had 3 run-ins with COVID-19, and 5 different days where at least one person in our tiny family of 4 has been tested. Thankfully, Thea had Croup (although that...
read morePopsicle Sticks
Let us not lose heart in doing good, for in due time we will reap if we do not grow weary. So then, while we have opportunity, let us do good to all people . . Galatians 6:10 NASB It was a brisk fall morning with a hint of rain in the air. I was delivering fruit and salsa to church for a brunch I wouldn’t attend. While decluttering, I had come upon a plastic baggie of popsicle sticks. Good memories of these sticks came to mind, so I popped them into my bag for the trip to church. On each popsicle stick was written the name of a family...
read moreA Quiet Unfurling
For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all. So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen. For what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal. 2 Corinthians 4:17-18 NASB It has been a time of transition for the Hjelmerviks this past month as it has been for many others, I know. With our oldest starting kindergarten, our middle son starting pre-k, and our youngest starting to scream at piercing levels at arbitrary times, we are all in a state of...
read moreSomething About Grace
Do not judge so that you will not be judged. For in the way you judge, you will be judged; and by your standard of measure, it will be measured to you. Why do you look at the speck that is in your brother’s eye, but do not notice the log that is in your own eye? Matthew 7:1-3 NASB For months, Carol had planned a family vacation to Mexico, the whole family including husbands and grandkids, fifteen of us. The day before we were to leave, we learned that one of the kid’s passports had expired. I felt angry and went into a slow burn. ...
read moreRecognized by “Perfect” Love
There is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear because fear has to do with punishment. The one who fears is not made perfect in love. 1 John 4:18 NIV Encounter. Become. Impact. Creekside’s three action words reminded me so much of this verse during our Celebration Sunday. How did I connect perfect love to them? The idea that “perfect love drives out fear” has been quoted to me numerous times in the context of stress and anxiety. I have often seen it in those lists of “Bible Verses About Fear and Anxiety”. While it did provide...
read moreWhat Gives Your Life Meaning
For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand so that we would walk in them. Ephesians 2:10 NASB What gives your life meaning or motivates you? That was a question on a questionnaire sent to me by a new doctor with whom I was scheduled for an appointment. Usually, they want to know what meds I’m taking and my level of pain on a scale of 1 to 10. At first, I was kind of taken aback by the question coming from a doc who is not a psychiatrist. I could have responded ”to play a better game of...
read moreThe Right Mindset
Those who live according to the flesh have their minds set on what the flesh desires, but those who live in accordance with the Spirit have their minds on what the Spirit desires. (Romans 8:5 NIV) I struggle a lot with mental conflict. It is not at all uncommon for me to agonize over something or get worked up for seemingly no reason at all. Most often this is the result of approaching something with the wrong state of mind. While I can usually keep outbursts to a minimum, the anguish or frustration I feel is nonetheless...
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