I’m 𝑒𝓍𝒽𝒶𝓊𝓈𝓉𝑒𝒹. I’ve been feeling it awhile, but today, I’m admitting it.
It’s not just Fridays. It’s not just cold, dreary days of January. It’s a deep exhaustion that comes from daily being surrounded by bad news and constant need. I’m depleted, devoid of the bank of energy that usually fuels me.
When I read this verse recently, “Blessed are those whose strength is in You,” it hit me square on.
Read MoreThere is a trend in today’s modern Church to “fast” things that aren’t food (social media, Netflix, coffee, novels, chocolate--lots of stuff).
Biblically, fasting was always about going without food. It is much harder, and we should understand that’s WHY it’s harder--because we’d all rather give up Netflix than actual food. This point is convicting for me, too! As I worked on this study, I realized I find it much easier to choose for myself what I’m *willing* to give up instead of doing it God’s way.
if Netflix or Facebook is “essential” to your life, to the point where you need to fast it, there’s a problem. If God reveals to you that entertainment or social media is getting in the way of your relationship with Him, then that is an IDOL. And you can’t fast an idol.
Read MoreI just got back to Spain from my annual trip to the United States. One of the things I particularly love about the holidays is being able to eat all the goodies that come with Christmas, especially the Maryland things that I don’t get to eat here in Spain. Since I am from the coast, I got to eat a lot of seafood, and I enjoyed every bit of it!
But then I returned to Spain, where our church had a week of prayer and fasting. It coincided with a huge snowstorm (in a city where it doesn’t snow!) so fasting was a good option with all the empty grocery stores!
Many churches do a special emphasis on prayer and fasting in January, but why exactly? Where do we get this habit of doing prayer and fasting at the beginning of the year? What is the point of fasting, other than to lose weight after eating so much in the holiday season?
This week I traveled from Maryland to Madrid returning from my annual Christmas pilgrimage. And my trips back to Spain generally have one thing in common: too much luggage.
I typically spend the last two days of my trip trying to pack it all in and incessantly weighing the bags to make sure that I can get them on the plane without paying astronomical fees. And then, there’s the reshuffling from back to bag and inevitably all of the things that are really heavy end up in my carry-on. My wheelie bag carries all the books, a huge bag of brown sugar, my technological devices, and more. And when that gets overflowed, the backpack gets filled next. More books, more snacks, more technology.
But that means that for the next 16 hours I’m carrying that load on my literal back as well as pulling it behind me, straining my arm muscles in an effort to drag with me all the things that I believe to be “necessities.”
We're already on our third installment of the Spanish culture segment, working through the alphabet. This month we have C for Castillo (pronounced cas-ti-yo) which means "castle" in English.
Before I ever moved to Spain, I'd already heard of the castles in Spain, because when I lived in France, I learned the snarky expression, "building castles in Spain," as a way to describe dreams or plans that are unrealistic. That expression was coined in the 1300's, but over the past several hundred years, it devolved into our English version as, "building castles in the air." I'm not sure why building castles in Spain was ever seen as an unrealistic project, because there are literally castles EVERYWHERE in this country.
One of my favorite castles is nearby in Segovia (pictured at the top, above); its towers and turrets were part of the inspiration for Walt Disney, when he designed Cinderella's castle. But these turrets also have a distinct spiritual application!
From my earliest days, I’ve known I had a “strong personality” as others have defined me. My Enneagram type shows up on those charts as the “worst” character: Darth Vader, Adolf Hitler, Napoleon, just to name a few. Yeesh. Thanks a lot.
But here’s what those charts mean: I am confident when others are insecure. I am decisive when others waffle. While others are still processing what they really think, I’ve already spoken up to give my perspective AND a strategic plan. Definitively.
I am fearless, strong, and vocal, and you know what? GOD CREATED ME to be who I am.
Read MoreWe're a few months out from Christmas, but it won't be long before the decorations will come out. I'll decorate my apartment with some nativity sets collected from other countries, but although I've wanted to buy a Spanish one, I've had a hard time finding one. Here's why: Spanish nativity sets are passed on through families. Each year, the family adds a new element or two, until the nativity set is pretty detailed, containing more of a village than a set of one little family around a manger. In fact, Belén literally means, "Bethlehem" so perhaps that's part of why they set up an elaborate village scene, rather than just the usual few figurines. But the history and practice in Spain is pretty fascinating…
Read MoreWith September in full swing, I’m getting ready for AUTUMN! So what does that have to do with May?
Read MoreMadrid’s Parque Retiro is one of its most beautiful features, but the art installation currently housed in the Palacio de Cristal is competing for attention, with it’s colorful canvas flowers and magical forest quality.
Read MoreWhat do shoestrings, siestas, and Spain have in common? Find out here!
Read MoreAs I shared photos of my travel experiences a few people commented, WHERE IS THAT? I’m hoping that perhaps you would also like to see some of these great locations. If so, here are my airbnb links and experiences as I traveled through Andalucía over the past few weeks.
Read MoreOn my Andalucian adventure, I desperately wanted mollete with tomato, my favorite breakfast. But finding it was harder than I expected it to be!
Read MoreI’m fortunate enough to live about an hour away from Segovia, where one of the world’s best ancient aqueducts exists to this day. For almost 2000 years, it has carried water from the local Frío river into the community of Segovia.
The aqueduct of Segovia is impressive indeed: 165 visible arches, 30 feet high, plus ten miles of underground system, and all of it built from granite without mortar! It’s no wonder that it’s the city symbol of Segovia, and a source of great pride for its people. .
Read MoreThis HUGE message is painted on the wall of my gym, indicating where the changing rooms are located. I make jokes about it with my roommate because it’s such a BOLD imperative statement: CHANGE!
As if it were just that easy….
Read MoreHiking! Amazing! So many photos! Or, just check out the SHORT video here! :)
Read MoreI came across this quote recently and boy, does it resonate! It’s basically the reminder I need for every day of 2020. From one day to the next, I don’t know what will happen, and I’ve lost count of things that have been cancelled from my 2020 calendar. As a lifelong “planner” this year has been a total revelation for me of what it means to trust God in the present moment.
Read MoreThis summer, due to Covid and its complications, our church has moved to outdoor worship in public parks of Madrid. And I’ve come to realize, what we thought was simply an “expedient” decision may have been the closest to God’s original plan for mankind all along.
Read MoreIn the past few months I’ve been increasingly dismayed by social media. In fact, I’ve considered going offline completely, eliminating much of the ugliness that comes with the Facebook feed. But I decided to stay on social media to communicate my greatest value and my greatest passion—serving the Lord and the world around me.
So you have my personal guarantee that allllll of my posts will pretty much focus on four values. (Read more…)
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