“Although it is tempting to hope that we can eliminate shame from our relational diet, it is futile to wish for this. Our hope is, rather, changing our response to it as we journey together toward God’s kingdom. . . . As such . . . we starve [shame] over time, not by avoiding it […]
“I wonder if our desire to keep a distance from God has less to do with God and more to do with what we carry. . . . it’s essential to note that even when we withdraw, God lovingly approaches us. Just as he came down to the level of the Israelites, he meets us […]
“We can be blind to God’s good gifts because we focus on what isn’t working right now and how hopeless we feel in our day-to-day life. . . . when we are continually focused on the pain we feel, moving out of it doesn’t happen easily. There are times when we need to sit in […]
“The reality is that you and I cannot wave a magic wand and fix all the things we want to. Some things are just too broken and seem beyond repair. We cannot do it in our own strength, but we do know One who can bring calm into the chaos. The circumstances may not change, […]
“You might be turning over every rock to find some relief. You might be hungering and thirsting for something that will last in a world where it feels like everything is fleeting. we all have something we want. We all hunger.”- Meredith McDaniel (emphasis author’s) Then Moses led Israel from the Red Sea and they […]
“When it feels like the waves of life are going to consume us, we have a clear choice. We can look back on our stories and be bound by darkness, letting it take root and defeat us, or we can sing a song of hope that springs us forward in the middle of the mess […]
“We all crave connection. It’s not something we can escape in this life because of the way God knit us together in our mother’s womb. We are relational beings, and God gave us those desires. . . . Longing to be connected to people . . . can be a God-given dream. Shaming ourselves for […]
“Sometimes it feels like the waves are going to consume us, doesn’t it? Like they just keep crashing and life becomes more than we can handle. It is in those moments when we are most like the Israelites, thinking our safety and security are up to us. This is an alarming spot to land in […]
“This is where so many holy people break down . . . . As soon as they reach the point where they can no longer see the way and guide themselves by their own light, they refuse to go any further. . . . It is in the darkness that we find true liberty. It […]
“Choosing to simply drudge through these days can become a recipe for disaster. We become filled with stress, anxiety, and desperation. All we feel invades our soul, and when the longing persists, it points us inward.”- Meredith McDaniel “By day the LORD went ahead of them in a pillar of cloud to guide them on […]
“God has the aerial view. He sees what is around every bend in your life, and he goes before us. . . . if we really sit back and consider that this could be true, trusting that God sees what’s ahead of us, we could start to find the peace and rest that we’ve been […]
“I’ve found that once we own and name our vices, we can unearth the role that they play in pointing us to our Redeemer and refining us. . . . We can learn slowly over time how to best grow as we glean wisdom from what would otherwise paralyze us.”- Meredith McDaniel In Chapter 8 […]