This is a barren stretch, this rocky dry savanna: land deprived of rain for half a year, parched now and waiting, waiting for the skies to fill with roiling water and at last to crack apart, thunderous, and spill down blessing. A golden fountain, meanwhile, dribbles petals, lemon yellow, in soft carpet all around. LeavesContinue reading “Lessons from the Golden Rain Tree”
Tag Archives: Africa
All I Have is Yours
This month you told me, “Hold on lightly to possessions; all you have is mine.” Then you brought forward chances to let go: my sweater to the shivering boy, my shirt to the cadavre (swollen past the size of her own clothes), my mat to the child who had no bed, my socks to helpContinue reading “All I Have is Yours”
Slippery Sand
The traps are there silent smooth slippery sand lurking in my stomping grounds waiting for that moment when (tired, stressed, stumbling) I forget to watch so I slide down that slope into disaster I let life take over busy pushing hard to meet my goals eyes distracted by the rocks obstacles I could climb overContinue reading “Slippery Sand”
He Split the Confines of Their Box
His kindness overwhelmed them from the start: the way he chose his students, hearts that yearned for meaning beyond fishing nets or taxes; welcoming the seventy, both genders, to his company— the way he broke the rules that kept the stranger snubbed and minimized, and crushed the prejudice that said a woman should not learn,Continue reading “He Split the Confines of Their Box”
Blaze!
Across the bristling grasses and the breezy palm tree dance lies a long lagoon, all liquid, mirror for the sky’s expanse. Underneath a white-hot sun it becomes a brilliant blast and my eyelids squint to slivers letting just a glimmer past: just the essence of the power, just the outline of the heat, just impressionsContinue reading “Blaze!”
Learning Mercy
God with us, full of grace, full of truth, you are who I long for! I yearn to be like you at long last. You’re changing me, curing me of sin and selfishness. You taught me service, then sent me to my sister’s side, to simply be there, waiting to serve her any way sheContinue reading “Learning Mercy”
Yearning to Be Filled
Yearning to be filled, filled up to capacity to the full measure of God’s own fullness — possible? to be filled like the ocean, deep, with its waters reaching always heavenward, splashing to the shore — possible? to be filled like the skies, air and clouds all rising higher and the glory of the sunlightContinue reading “Yearning to Be Filled”
Living Together with Christ
more and more at home he is entering with glad assurance no longer knocking and wondering if I will see him as interruption intrusion guest who puts me on my toes my best behavior politeness with an edge of tension whisking litter out of sight swabbing the sink shutting a bedroom door mess out ofContinue reading “Living Together with Christ”
War, and the Place of Protection
Living inside Your love I move within a world protected not that I am never wounded but that you keep me safe from ultimate harm from all malignant and pernicious evil inside the loving kindness of your heart I’m held where goodness is my atmosphere, your tenderness the song that plays incessantly and heals me,Continue reading “War, and the Place of Protection”
Longing for Quiet
The words come crashing in like chattering kids. They’re only in my head but they are deafening. I cannot stem the tide. A billion babblings jostle for position. One sinks, one bubbles up. He says, “Be silent,” and I long for quiet to listen for his voice, to know that he is God. I’m desperateContinue reading “Longing for Quiet”
Linnea's Lines 