John Eldredge's Blog, page 3

Defend Margin

Over the years, what I’ve tried to do with these letters is to share with you what I’m hearing from Jesus, and what I’m seeing unfold in the world, so that we all might walk more closely with him and strengthen ourselves with his strength in this Hour. I think that’s the single most helpful thing I can offer.

So here’s what I have been sensing lately…

At the top of the year, when Stasi and I were doing some listening prayer (asking Jesus his advance words for 2022 for us), one of the things he said was, “Defend margin.” We had a sense that we needed to make extra room in our calendar for unforeseen circumstances that were coming. (So kind of God not to tell us what was coming, just to create some margin.) We created that margin…and then it got eaten by those unforeseen circumstances. But I’m very glad we at least had some breathing room built in. If we hadn’t, we would have been candles burning at both ends.

Then I began hearing a number of stories from different people, each with unique circumstances but all with the same theme––life becoming so full and demanding they haven’t really any personal time to catch their breath.

The stories kept coming––folks navigating all sorts of challenges in their personal lives for months, perhaps years, as well as the global trauma and the warfare of the Hour which we’ve been talking about on our podcast and in these letters. The effect is that these dear people are now running on very low reserves. These are mature saints, folks who know how to live responsibly, walk closely with God, and practice soul care. But nevertheless, the demands keep coming and they find themselves awfully tired at the end of a week. But then comes the next thing demanding their attention.

Here’s the dark twist––the stories all have enough differences that the people in them feel unique and rather alone in their situation. They don't see their stories as somehow confirming larger movements. What they see is their child's learning disabilities and heartaches. What they see is their spouse’s battle with cancer. What they see is the financial strain, which they feel embarrassed about. And each story is so personal, it feels isolating, so they don't realize that most of the friends of Jesus are undergoing the same thing. 

I've been feeling for some time now that the Enemy's plan is to wear people down, and then offer us some sort of relief, which isn't the same thing as deep intimacy with God. (Relief and restoration are very different things.) Relief says, just get me to that vacation. Let me buy some new clothes. Let's just go out to dinner. I just want to veg and watch movies. 

Whatever else you think about the pandemic, I want to point out the psychological drain that the common, long-term physical effects have on a person. A friend of mine still can’t get out and cycle even a year after his bout with Covid. Another has rallied, but he’s noticing if he ever really pushes himself physically, he’s wiped out for a few days. One friend’s daughter has had to give up her dancing because her body has just not recovered; she now has chronic fatigue. And of course those heartaches then weigh on the parents, maybe even more deeply, because they can’t seem to help. These are widespread phenomena, and they point to the larger, draining nature of this Hour.

I don’t think it’s a coincidence that when Daniel talks about the work of the enemy towards the climax of the age, one of the phrases he uses is that he will wear down the people of God.

“He will defy the Most High God and wear down the saints…and he will try to change all laws, morals, and customs.” (Daniel 7:25 TLB)

I do have to say, I’m seeing that everywhere. But especially among the friends of God. 

Notice I said the friends of God. There’s an important difference between people who identify as Christians and people who are the friends of Jesus. It has to do with devotion, and attention; it has to do with priorities. It especially has to do with partnership, because the friends of God want to partner with God and what he’s up to. Our enemy is happy to leave casual Christians alone for the most part. The folks that get his attention, get into his crosshairs, are the true friends of God. And those folks are telling me a lot of stories of personal situations that have them pretty worn out.

Back to what Jesus said to Stasi and me at the start of the year. Defend margin. We did, and then the crises came, and thank God we had the margin. But it all got used up. So now what I need to do is look at the next quarter, and make sure that I am creating margin again.

Summer for us is usually a time for recharging our batteries. But with some shock I looked at the calendar and realized that our summer is almost filled with demands. So I'm going to have to go back and create margin. And defend it.

The Enemy is a brilliant strategist. He knows the friends of God are his biggest problem. So he’s wearing us down, making it difficult for us to navigate the challenges of the world in this Hour. 

So this is my simple recommendation to you––defend margin. Create it, even if it is costly to create. And then defend it. Because we can’t control all the twists and turns of life. What we can do is make wise plans that accommodate for what is happening to the saints in this Hour, and one of those pieces of wise accommodation is to create and defend margin. 

You’ll be so grateful you did.

Download the Wild at Heart Spring 2022 Newsletter.

Ten Bridesmaids

I want to begin this letter with a big, resounding Thank You!

We finished our ministry year in December right where our donations needed to be! You helped us out of the red and into the black with an outpouring of generosity, and I just want to say thank you so, so much!  

If you’ve been following the podcast at all (and I hope you do; it is so good for your heart!), you know that we’ve been reflecting on the parable of the Ten Bridesmaids. I'm not alone in believing that this parable is where we are in human history. Let me tell you why, and how its warning can rescue us.

First, let’s remember what life is: Life is a story that God is telling. 

And like every other story, this one doesn't stay in the same place. Stories that don’t go anywhere are really boring stories. Our story is currently racing towards its climax; Jesus wanted us to be prepared for the unique pressures such an hour brings. That’s why, after he talked about the pressures in Matthew 24, he told this parable in Matthew 25:

“At that time [the end of this age] the kingdom of heaven will be like ten virgins who took their lamps and went out to meet the bridegroom. Five of them were foolish and five were wise. The foolish ones took their lamps but did not take any oil with them. The wise ones, however, took oil in jars along with their lamps. The bridegroom was a long time in coming, and they all became drowsy and fell asleep. At midnight the cry rang out: ‘Here’s the bridegroom! Come out to meet him!’ Then all the virgins woke up and trimmed their lamps. The foolish ones said to the wise, ‘Give us some of your oil; our lamps are going out.’ ‘No,’ they replied, ‘there may not be enough for both us and you. Instead, go to those who sell oil and buy some for yourselves.’ But while they were on their way to buy the oil, the bridegroom arrived. The virgins who were ready went in with him to the wedding banquet. And the door was shut. Later the others also came. ‘Lord, Lord,’ they said, ‘open the door for us!’ But he replied, ‘Truly I tell you, I don’t know you.’ Therefore keep watch, because you do not know the day or the hour.” (Matthew 25:1-13 NIV)
 

It’s unnerving, to be honest. I think Jesus meant it to be. 

Let's seize the obvious points first: There are wise bridesmaids and foolish bridesmaids, smart ones and dumb ones. The smart bridesmaids have taken care to bring along extra oil. The dumb ones don't, and it doesn’t go well for them. The oil represents the presence of God in our lives. As C. S. Lewis observed,

God made us: invented us as a man invents an engine. A car is made to run on petrol, and it would not run properly on anything else. Now God designed the human machine to run on Himself. He Himself is the fuel our spirits were designed to burn, or the food our spirits were designed to feed on. (Mere Christianity)

Crises like global pandemics are draining. You don't want to run out of gas, out of the presence of God in your life. Jesus urges us to be intentional, to make sure that we have more than enough to make it through today; he wants us to make sure we have reserves. Full tanks, lives filled with God. 

So the question of the hour, the question every follower of Jesus needs to be asking, is this:
  
What are you doing on a daily basis to make sure you have enough oil? That you are cultivating a plentiful reserve of the presence of God in your life?

Right now, people are glad just to get something of their normal lives back. We’ve got restaurants, we’ve got travel––everything’s okay! But that’s a brilliant delusion, because tacos and a week at the beach are not going to see you through the rest of the year. Only the presence of your loving God can do that.

The pandemic was a “shaking.” There are reasons to believe that another shaking is coming. I’m not a doomsday prophet. I can simply tell you that the men and women I know who hear from God in deep and profound ways have a sense we aren’t out of the woods yet. That’s why it’s so important to be deeply grounded in God right now, cultivating a rich supply of his presence in our very souls. Let me make this very specific.

Here’s a “bare minimum” plan; this isn’t everything, but it will get you going:

Morning prayer, before anything else. Especially before you check your phone, email, or the news. Get on the Wild at Heart app, listen to the Daily Prayer every day.

Then linger with something devotional. I recommend the Lectio365 app, a morning and evening devotional that takes about ten minutes.

Learn to release the pressures, demands, and madness. Use our Pause app to practice benevolent detachment and restore your union with Jesus. This takes three minutes; do it midmorning and midafternoon. 

Worship and bedtime prayer. Before you end your day, spend a few moments worshiping God. Do the evening Lectio365 segment. Finish with the Bedtime Prayer on the Wild at Heart app.

This will create a rhythm to your day that keeps you centered in Jesus and allows the oil of his presence to fill your tanks. Success is in the rhythms we create for our souls.

Like I said, it’s not everything. We need Christian fellowship, joy, play, nature, the sacraments. But the plan I just gave you is simple and sustainable. 

Let’s be smart bridesmaids even though we might be surrounded by less-than-smart ones.

Download the Wild at Heart February Newsletter. 
 

Merry Christmas

Dear Friends,

A most heartfelt Merry Christmas and Christmastide to you and yours! If you receive this by post I’m not sure when it will reach you, but wherever you are in the holiday season may joy be yours in abundance!

After year two of the pandemic I think all of us are longing for beauty and love and sacred moments this December. So let’s remember, friends, beautiful things like love and joy and sacred moments do not just happen. They are something we contend for, something we help usher in through our choices and prayers. I felt Jesus move me in this Christmas letter to give you something wonderful to help you navigate the holidays and protect the joy he has for you.

The phrase I have been praying, invoking, and comforting myself with lately is, “Your Glory, Your Love, Your Kingdom.” Let me share why...

First, the hope we celebrate in the coming Messiah is the hope of the arrival of a great and victorious King, who will usher in a great and glorious Kingdom:

The people walking in darkness have seen a great light; on those living in the land of deep darkness a light has dawned. For to us a child is born, to us a son is given, and the government will be on his shoulders. And he will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. Of the greatness of his government and peace there will be no end. (Isaiah 9:2,6-7)

Christmas is so much more than Bethlehem. Bethlehem is thrilling because the King we love and long for has come to retake this world, unleashing the Kingdom. I think we forget that Christmas is about the triumphant invasion of the Kingdom of God! We rejoice because it is only in God’s Kingdom we can find the lasting joy, love, and all the sacred moments we long for.

Next comes Love. We’ve been living in a stressful time for almost two years now, and folks are frayed at the edges. Friends of ours were not able to gather with their families for Thanksgiving either because of travel restrictions, or because various family members were drawing lines about who is admitted depending on their vaccine status. The holidays have always been a time to navigate relationships, but all the more so this year. If we’re going to find our way to everything Jesus has for us, we need to live in the authority and ethos of his Kingdom this holiday season, and the ethos of his Kingdom is always love. Jesus is the Prince of Peace because he rules through love, and love brings peace into social tension and frayed relationships.

I find I’m having to choose love a lot more this season, and even to invoke love through my prayers into our various gatherings and relationships.

Lastly, let me add the wonder and power of the Glory of God. 

Arise, shine, for your light has come, and the glory of the Lord rises upon you. See, darkness covers the earth and thick darkness is over the peoples, but the Lord rises upon you and his glory appears over you. (Isaiah 60:1-2)

What is this glory? Why is it important for us just now?

Remember the wedding at Cana, where Jesus turned water into wine. Christ has the attendants fill six stone jars with water; each jar could hold up to 30 gallons. Then Jesus turns every drop into wine––and fine, sumptuous wine at that. One hundred and eighty gallons of exquisite wine poured into the party at the end of the evening. After telling that story, the Gospel says, “What Jesus did here in Cana of Galilee was the first of the signs through which he revealed his glory; and his disciples believed in him” (John 2:17).
 
What exactly did Cana “reveal”? God’s supernatural power to overcome shortage and deprivation with overwhelming abundance! That’s his glory; he did it by the power of his glory.
 
Paul, writing in the book of Romans, is trying to help us understand the availability of the power of God for us, in us. He turns to the resurrection, and he says, “It was by the glory of God that Jesus was raised from the dead.” The glory of God––the regenerative, resurrecting, glory of God. “The whole world is filled with his glory” (Isaiah 6:3). Think of the sun, how absolutely wonderful the sun is! Its radiance, beauty, and cheerfulness; how much life it gives! It is pulsating with the glory-power of God. Think of the oceans and the forests of the world––how vast they are, how filled with life. The whole world is filled with the glory of God. It is the life-giving, life-sustaining, generative power of God.
 
So, for our purposes here, when you think of the glory of God “risen upon you,” think of the sun, the ocean, water turned into wine, and Christ raised from the dead. Think of Eden.

You’ve heard me talk about Desolation in my letters and podcasts. If you follow the flow of Scripture and human history, you can see that our enemy wants to make everything a desolate wasteland, from society to the human heart. But this King of Bethlehem intends to make everything a restored Eden!! So when it comes to the resilience we need against Desolation, part of that provision is our Father’s Eden Glory––the glory of God in you and around you, giving you supernatural resilience and guarding you like a shield.

So here’s what I'm suggesting for your holidays: that you invoke the glory of God, the love of God, and the Kingdom of God into every aspect of your life. 

Your Glory, Your Love, Your Kingdom, Lord, in my heart and soul. In my family and household. In our Christmas observances. In every joy and gift of happiness you have for me. Your Glory. Your Love. Your Kingdom.

I think you'll find it to be very, very helpful!

Offered with Christmas love and blessings––not only from me, but from all your friends here at Wild at Heart. 

Love,

John 

Download the Wild at Heart December 2021 newsletter here. 

A Brilliant Month for Us

October has been a brilliant month for us, for so many reasons. We held our first live Captivating retreat in over two years this month, and it was...breathtaking!

We honestly weren’t sure what it would be like, after these hard pandemic years and all the political tension. No one even talked about Covid; it was as if it didn't exist. Instead, everyone turned their hearts towards Jesus! The atmosphere was so loving, so thirsty for God! And he came, like always, and ushered in his beautiful work.

One of the women who attended tried to take her life the week before the event. Her husband intervened—he called us and got her into the retreat at the last minute. She came with a very broken heart. Jesus was waiting. He moved deeply, powerfully, breaking the dark holds on her life and setting her free. At the end of the four days, her countenance was shining. She was alive!

Jesus did that for hundreds and hundreds of women. 

Oh, friends––there is nothing in heaven or on earth as beautiful as redemption.

The very same weekend friends of ours were holding “BASICs” in the US and around the British Isles. “BASIC” is our full, four-day Wild at Heart retreat by video session, film clips and all. We made our men’s and women’s events available this way several years ago, for free, and hundreds have taken place right through the pandemic. My friend wrote me afterwards to say that he was speechless at how deeply God worked among the men. But his greatest joy was to have a dear friend, the only unbeliever who attended, come to Christ and be baptized at the close!

There simply is nothing like the beauty of redemption, the healing of a human heart and life.

Another BASIC took place in Scotland, with a group of pretty rough characters attending––guys off the streets and fresh out of drug rehab programs. I got to have a video chat with them; their faces were absolutely shining. Clearly, their hearts had been healed, set free. “No Jesus message has ever touched my life,” one man said. “This unlocked my heart!”

The beauty of God’s redemptive work through the Gospel of the Heart. Unlocking each human heart, and the heart of Jesus as he really is. 

I was raised Catholic, spent over 15 years studying the Bible at CBS (Community Bible Study). I’m an engineer, have three adult sons (one who is on the spectrum), one adult daughter, and five grandchildren. Fifteen months ago my husband of 37 years died after a short battle with stomach cancer. My relationship with Jesus was rocked (to put it mildly). A coworker gave me a copy of Beautiful Outlaw. THIS – CHANGED – EVERYTHING!!!! 

Since then, I have given away 40 copies (and counting). I think because of Covid, the forced isolation and all the other crazy things happening in this world, people are STARVING to hear the truth about who Jesus really is and what that really means in their lives. Beautiful Outlaw blows open all the crazy limits (and a TON of other things!) that we put on God and restores our hope in being able to have a real and impactful relationship with the God of the universe.

Like I said––October has been a brilliant, bright, shining month for us as hundreds and hundreds of these stories pour in from around the world!

And there is more to come. We’re holding our first Wild at Heart Boot Camp since the pandemic next month, we’ve launched a new podcast for women (Captivated), we’re creating a new film series we believe will reach millions, and our friends and allies are holding events offering this message all over the place! 

The sweeping beauty of redemption is growing, friends! It’s increasing, despite the world around us. Jesus is really moving!

And you have your own stories to tell. Oh, how we love being your friends in this hour! (Thank you, by the way, for all of the great responses to this newsletter! We hear such amazing stories about the impact of this simple missive each month!)

Jesus is moving very deeply. We are keeping up as best we can. But we do need your help.

We need your financial investment in this mission. (THANK YOU to all who do!)

We are a “crowd-funded” mission, which means that each and every year we rely on the support of our friends and allies to fill our piggy bank so we can keep the lights on and keep bringing podcasts, films, live events, and all we do to the world.

There is SO much more redemption to take place. Such beauty waiting to unfold. Would you invest in that with us?

We don’t plead, we don’t beg. We don’t have any grants, and we don’t do fundraising campaigns. We simply let our friends know a few times a year that we could use some help. Now is that time. Your gifts to us are investments in the rescue of a million more hearts. They are investments in the beauty of redemption––what could be more thrilling?

You can give online on our website, wildatheart.org; you can give in the return envelope; and now, you can give easily on our app! (The WildAtHeart app is available for free on the app store!)

At the close of our Captivating event, one woman said, “I’ve been waiting for this all my life.”

Jesus has given us a very special access to the human heart, to bring his healing and redemption there. In millions of hearts around the world. Thank you for investing in that, friends! You share in the joy and in the praise when Christ returns!

Thanks for supporting us here this fall; we are truly grateful.

Download the Wild at Heart October 2021 Newsletter here. 
 

Keep Recovery and Resilience in Front of You

The early stages of fall are upon us. Children (of all ages) are back to school, churches are gearing up for their fall programming, small groups are reconvening, work is getting busier, and summer vacations are in the rearview mirror. A season of transition.

And how is your soul feeling about making this transition? Might be good to check in right now.

All change feels like loss at first, but especially this year because our recovery is still tender. When we pass through a series of chronic disappointments like we have in the last eighteen months, we are sensitive to anything that feels like more disappointment. It’s a good idea to check in with your heart…

How are you feeling about leaving summer behind and entering into what is usually a more demanding time of year?

Are you ready to move into the “push” from September to the holidays? 

I’ve been writing to you each month (well, most months; I take a break now and then) about guiding our hearts and souls into recovery and resilience. At the start of summer, I suggested that you and Jesus write out a “prescription” for your recovery. Mine was a rescue, though I fought Jesus on it at first.

I knew I was beat up and probably overestimating my capacity. But everything in me wanted to travel and go on adventures. Jesus kept saying, No. I kept asking, ”Well how about this? How about that?” We had to work through my insistence that adventure travel was what I needed. Jesus kept saying no, and let me quickly say that looking back, I’m so grateful he did. I needed a really simple summer. Part of my delusion was based on the assumption that I’m fine; things are fine now.

As we move into the fall season, I think we’d better keep recovery and resilience in front of us. 

Just as I needed a “prescription” for my summer, I need one for this fall.

We are living in uniquely demanding times, dear ones. I think everyone feels it. In fact, I polled our staff last week on how everyone was doing. I asked the team, “Where do you fall into these three choices?”

I feel like we’re getting back to 2019! Normal life has returned.I feel I’m still in the turbulence of these unsettled times.I feel that things are strangely more intense, though I’m not sure why.

The vast majority of our team put themselves between turbulence and more intense.

How about you? Reread the choices, and let your soul answer for you.

Very few folks can honestly say things have settled back into normalcy, into pre-pandemic life. This is why we need to ask Jesus about our fall. We need to be honest about our situation even if the world around us is in global denial. (Which it is, because without Jesus and his kingdom, folks have to cling to every cliche of hope, even if it's delusional.)

Jesus, what is the rhythm and pace you have for me this fall? What do you want me “in,” and what do you want me “out of”?

Here’s a fun and informative exercise: If you could become a monk, what is the lifestyle you see yourself living? (Come on, we’ve all dreamed about unplugging from our 9-5, running away from it all, living in some beautiful place at a soulful pace.) What would you do if you could have that life? What would it involve as a daily rhythm? Quiet, prayer, meditation, walks, simple work like baking bread. 

Honestly, you can probably incorporate most of that into your normal life. 

So, write yourself a prescription for this fall. You know your strengths and weaknesses; you have a sense of what’s being asked of you. What would you recommend to yourself if you were really taking seriously the strength of your soul at this time?

I strongly recommend you also ask Jesus for his prescription for you in this hour. Ask him about the plans and assumptions you’ve already made for your life. (Do you really need to have those people over for dinner? Do you really need to repaint that spare room? Do you really need to call that person back this evening?) Honestly, I’m startled at how much I deem to be utterly necessary, but when I ask Christ about it he rescues me from so much pressure. I didn't need to make that call. I didn't need to do that project. I didn't need to get involved in someone else's drama even though I felt I should. 

Jesus has consistently opened up margin in my life that I didn't think was possible. And in that margin I have been able to go stronger. 

When athletes are preparing for a big event, they make a plan. They adjust their daily routine in order to rest, eat well, and train. They prepare themselves for what’s coming. Military forces do the same—they up their preparations before deployment. I think it would be really wise to chat with Jesus about your plans for the fall. We want to be resilient, not just “getting by.”

In love,

John

P.S. Our September podcast series will really help you find resilience this fall! Hope you tune in!

Download the Wild at Heart September 2021 newsletter here. 
 

Eden Longings

Dearest friends,

Well, how is your summer going? 

How is your recovery coming along?

I hope I don’t need at this point to convince you that we are in need of recovery. The world was absolutely mad and very draining before the pandemic. It was exhausting. On top of that madness, we then lived through 15+ months of global trauma, political unrest, social strife, and economic uncertainty. It had an effect on all of us, no matter how optimistic your personality may be. Trauma is trauma.

Have you noticed your fragmented mind? The inability to stay focused on one thing for more than a couple of moments? What did you have for breakfast two days ago? What did Jesus say to you back in May that was so wonderful? Have you noticed your loss of a sense of time, how easy it is to forget what day it is? Forgetting things so easily? Your search for some sort of relief? Those are some of the symptoms of trauma. 

Yes, I believe we are recovering. But our recovery is like a young sapling—it’s tender, vulnerable. It’s just getting started. 

Thank God summer is here, and we are all in one way or another trying to refill our tanks. Picnics. Barbecues. Gardens. Vacations. Movies. Dining out.

But my concern is a trend I see developing in my own life, and in the world, which I think we’d better name before it knocks our legs out from under us.

After so many months of “deprivation” of so many kinds, we are rushing out to get as much joy as we can. Binging, almost desperate to refill our famished souls. The problem is, a one-week vacation, no matter how wonderful, is not going to restore your humanity, refill your soul, or heal the effects of trauma. We cannot replenish our depleted reserves and heal the damage of the last year in a week or two.

Reserves are a really good barometer as to how you’re actually doing, because most people have the ability to rise up and face a day. Especially when it’s summer and it feels like joy is just around the corner. We can rally. Hope returns. But clarity comes when we tap into our reserves and assess what’s really there—that’s when we discover the depth of the depletion. 

For example, how would you feel if you were suddenly faced with a heartbreaking situation in your life—someone dear to you dies, a major financial collapse, a fire burns down your home? Facing crisis reveals how depleted our reserves are and how long it actually takes to replenish them.

Stay with me now. This isn’t a bummer of a letter. I have some real rescue for you.

Stasi said to me the other day, “I feel like my reserves are beginning to come back. I feel like most days I’m doing pretty good. But the problem is, it only takes one crisis and suddenly I’m back to feeling very little in the tank.”

I’m realizing that we’ve got to take a long-term view of our recovery. 

The trend I see unfolding continues like this: We all rush out to get as much joy and “normal life” as we can. Our Eden hearts are trying to find Eden moments with a kind of desperation. We then return to our day-to-day lives and discover that the vacation wasn’t enough; summer passed too quickly. Disappointment sets in. Because what do we do now?

This is the moment of real vulnerability. Because our Eden hearts are so famished, and our recovery has only just begun, disappointment sets us up for disillusionment, and Desolation.

I don’t mean discouragement, a few bad days. Desolation is a major dark force in the world today, a spiritual force, a foul spirit that is really causing people to lose heart, lose faith—even mature believers. I’ve had two close friends tell me that when they were “under it” (Desolation, that is), they felt like they weren’t even sure they believed in God anymore. So we’ve got this predator out there, looking for any crack to usher in various expressions of disillusionment and desolation, and we’ve got to be very wise in this moment.

Right now we are in the rush to get joy, desperate for Eden. It doesn’t really deliver; it’s too short, and it’s not enough. We are still so depleted. Then the enemy pounces. That’s the trend I want to expose for you. 

Now for three things that will help.

First, we’ve got to take a long-term view of our recovery. This will take the pressure off summer and the good things that are there to enjoy. We savor them, but we don’t expect a quick resurrection, a bounce-back. We set our sights on a longer recovery.

Second, we guard our heart against Desolation in every form, however it is trying to get in. Now, because this is a spiritual force, it needs a spiritual answer. The answer is the Glory of God—his “Eden Glory.” Because Desolation is like a desert, and Eden is the lush beauty/love/joy/life we are craving. Eden was generated out of the Glory of God, and so we have found it VERY helpful to pray, “I bring the Eden Glory of God my Father against all Desolation, in the name of Jesus.” I’m telling you, it works.

Third, when we feel those intense “Eden longings,” when we find ourselves dreaming or grasping for some sort of joy, we shepherd our hearts back to God. “I give my Eden heart to you, Father. Right here, in this, I give this Eden longing to you.”

The world doesn’t process life—or pandemics—in terms of God, the war with evil, and the fight for the human heart. It’s just naively rushing out to grab joy, pretending we are nearly back to normal. It denies the trauma. 

But we, the friends of God, take a different view of things. Broad is the path that leads to destruction, narrow the road that leads to life, as Jesus said. Let’s choose life by taking this all much more seriously than maybe we have been.

Offered in love, and because I began to experience the “trend” myself.

John

Download the Wild at Heart July 2021 newsletter here. 

Living

Happy summer! Last time I wrote—in April—I put before you the idea of developing a “prescription” for your recovery after the year we’ve all been through. My premise was that we have all passed through global trauma, and it has affected us whether we know it or not. We need to look at the months ahead as “rehab” for our souls. You are in rehab.

I suggested you have some conversation with Jesus about his “prescription” for your recovery—especially as it pertains to summer. Hope all that is going well. That you have something of a plan, or at least some guidelines, and that for the most part you are sticking to them day by day. 

This month I’d like to offer more for your restoration and wholeheartedness. 

There is in each of us a capacity I call “Living.” What I mean by this is the deep intentionality we have as human beings to aspire towards things that bring us life, plan towards those things, take hold of them, enjoy them, and start the cycle over as we aspire towards new things. I’ve named this capacity as a whole the drive for Living. 

This capacity, our human functioning in the realm of Living, has taken a real beating over the past year. The chronic disappointments, all those losses great and small, and the inability to make plans for the future throttled the capacity of Living in us, just as chronic rejection hampers your ability for relationship, or how chronic failure harms your capacity for hope. Living needs some care in us.

Now, if you read Get Your Life Back or listened to the podcasts we did around it, or really if you just read this newsletter through 2019-2020, you recall the idea that there are “natural graces” we can take hold of to heal our souls. Things like beauty, detachment, pausing, and dialing back your screen time. (A good bit of my prescription for this summer involves those things.) 

But what I want to do now is suggest a “supernatural grace” that will do great good for healing your capacity for Living.

First, a reminder: Christians are meant to be amphibians; that is to say, we are made to live and move comfortably between two worlds—this natural world, and the supernatural world of the Kingdom of God. Here in the natural world we enjoy the warmth of the sun, the coolness of water, the beauty of music, things like that. But there is a realm all around us filled with the presence of God and supernatural graces we need to learn to tap into. (Prayer, for example, is tapping into the resources of God and his Kingdom.)

Living needs some care in us, and there is a supernatural grace that is perfect for bringing that care and restoration—the River of Life. Stay with me, because this is going to become precious to you.

In the Old Testament, the prophet Ezekiel was taken into the Kingdom of God and given a number of visions. He saw the temple of God in Jerusalem, and out of the temple was flowing the River of Life. As it flowed forth across the countryside, it became so deep and wide it wasn’t possible to swim across it. A fabulous picture of abundance! But I love how the passage ends: “Where the river flows, everything will live” (Ezekiel 47:9).

In the New Testament, John is given a revelation of the coming Kingdom, and he sees the River of Life flowing right down the middle of the City of God. However, the River is NOT just for “later.” In the Gospel of John, Jesus states very clearly that the River is meant to flow out of our own being:

“If anyone is thirsty, let him come to me and drink. Whoever believes in me, as the Scripture has said, rivers of living water will flow from within him” (John 7:37-38). 

Now let me pull this together. We have a capacity in us for Living; it’s a very precious capacity, and it has taken a beating. We are amphibians, so our means of restoration are not just in the natural realm; some of the most powerful graces come from the Kingdom of God. The River of Life is one of those supernatural graces. What I want to suggest is that you pray for the River of Life to flow in and through your capacity for Living—to heal and restore Living in you. Like this:

Jesus, I consecrate to you my capacity for Living. My ability to aspire for good things, plan for them, take hold of them, enjoy them, and keep on aspiring. I consecrate all Living in me to you, Lord, and I ask that the River of Life would flow in me, in the capacity of Living. Let the River flow in and through and all around the capacity of Living in me, restoring, renewing, and healing all Living in me. In your mighty name I pray.

I have found this practice to be absolutely effective and wonderful, so much so that I pray it nearly every day now.

Offered in love,

John

Download the Wild at Heart June 2021 newsletter here. 
 

What is your recovery plan?

If you’ve ever had to care for your body through some sort of recovery, you know how beautiful and vulnerable these vessels are. I’ve been through physical therapy a number of times over the years as various injuries have required, and every time I am struck by the created order God wove into the world––how we must pay loving attention to our care and recovery and not just ignore the signs when care is needed. When I accept the recovery process, and follow it through, I’m always grateful. When I ignore it, or drop it prematurely, I always regret it and have to start over.

The same is true of your heart and soul. There are periods when they need intentional care, too.

We are now emerging, in some places sooner than others, from a year of global trauma. Your soul needs some tending to.

And to be clear, it has been trauma. To be robbed of your normal routine for months upon months; to be kept in a state of uncertainty; to face serial disappointments large and small; to be bombarded by bad news; to face death; and never clear on when the finish line would appear. May I point out that this is exactly what is done to prisoners under interrogation, when their captors want to break them down?! The past twelve months have been rough on our humanity.

Now is the time to begin planning for your recovery.

Because you are now, or soon will be entering, the phase of rehab and recovery.

Oh yes––there will be joy in simply going out to dinner, watching your kids play sports, seeing your family face-to-face, going to church, ball games, concerts. It will be lovely. May all those things come to you by summer!

But simply getting a hot dog at a baseball game, or going to a movie is not sufficient to address the trauma you have been through.

So what I’m recommending is that you begin to map out for yourself a “rehab and recovery plan” for your soul.

For example, most of us have done a pretty good job of “rallying” over the past year, and congratulations for it. Well done, everyone! Good job! But rallying for months and months required tapping deeply into our reserves, and they are tapped out. Don’t think so? Feel like that’s just for others? How would you feel if I told you another pandemic is coming next month, and we are starting all over? I bet the very thought of it takes you to the brink. There’s not a lot left in the reserve tank.

Now, in order to replenish your reserves, you need a period of time where more is coming “in” than is going “out.” That’s the simple math. You can’t replenish your reserves if you are still spending 100% or more in your weekly output. This is why, for most people, vacations are so wonderful. We downshift; we go get some joy; we let go of most demands in order to drink in beauty, fun, rest. We find ourselves doing better, feeling better, because we are receiving more than we are burning.

I hope you’ll give some careful thought as to how you’ll be spending your vacation time this year. It’s an important part of your recovery plan. But it’s only a part, dear friends. One or two weeks off is not going to address the harm your soul has been through over the course of an entire, unprecedented year of global tension, lockdown, and loss.

So you need a recovery plan. And I think it will be a wonderful exercise for you to get some time with Jesus over the course of the next few weeks to allow him to talk to you about your plan.

For example: one of the genuine disappointments Stasi and I suffered last year was losing an overseas trip we had been looking forward to for five months. Naturally, as it began to look like travel might be an option for the second half of 2021, we thought we should reboot that trip. But as I prayed and thought and listened to Jesus, I came to the realization that international travel, however much we love it, is not what our souls need this summer. We need simple rest; working in the garden; sunsets on the deck; picnics and swimming––things that are close at hand and don’t require major effort to get to the joyful parts. More coming in than is going out.

My sons call it the “Cost to Joy Ratio.” 

Every outing, adventure, party, vacation, and undertaking has a cost to it. The question you want to ask is this: Does the joy that the event brings you outweigh the cost it requires to make it happen? Is more coming in than is going out? (If you need a vacation to recover from your vacation, you’ve got the cost/joy ratio all wrong!) This is important to consider anytime, but essential to think through in a year like this when we are all recovering from global trauma and need to take our recovery plan seriously.

So here’s what you do:

Give yourself several opportunities in the next few weeks to sit down with a pad of paper and just noodle on the idea of a recovery plan. You know yourself––what would you recommend if you were counseling you over a three month recovery plan for your soul? How would you arrange for periods where more is coming in than is going out?

As you do this, invite Jesus in; let him speak. Ask him what he recommends. What he says often surprises me (like “don’t travel yet”), but always makes sense in the end.

As your plan takes shape, write it down and post it somewhere you’ll see it often. If you are living with your spouse and/or family, let them in on the plan. Talk about it openly, so you can help one another in good decision making. 

More coming in than is going out; more joy from the effort than the cost of making it happen.

Offered in love,

John

Download the Wild at Heart April 2021 Newsletter here. 

Homecoming '21 and new Experiences

IF YOU ARE READING THIS BEFORE MARCH 6 you still have time to join us for Fresh Hearts, Strong Hearts—Homecoming ‘21, a live online event.

2020 left us all a bit weary and beat up. Maybe more than a bit weary. We thought it was time for some renewal and refreshment in our hearts! Stasi and I invite you to join us for a 90 minute online live event which I think will feel sort of like a "soul spa." Jesus has been showing us some amazing new ways to tap into the resources of heaven, for the recovery and strengthening of our hearts and souls. We want to share them with you, so that wherever you are—in quarantine or not—you can defy the draining world and live with a fresh wind in your sails! 

Our first Homecoming, back in 2019, was so good; we think this one will be even better!

Homecoming '21 is a live online event, March 6, 1:00pm Mountain Time. To register come to our homepage www.wildatheart.org (you do need to register to get the link). $15 gets you a “household ticket” that anyone in your home can use to join in. 

(And yes—at some point this will probably get posted online in the aftermath. But not for a while, so please join us live if you can!)

Recovering Heart

Speaking of how draining this whole stressed-out world has been, I’m also very excited to announce a brand new offering from Wild at Heart for women, and another for men…

Back in January, we were reflecting on the podcast about the unique challenges of the last twelve months for the hearts of women, and the hearts of men. We know it’s been rough, but I don't think we’ve been able to put words to exactly how it’s been rough in unique ways for women, and for men. To give a few examples…

Women thrive in relationships, but the pandemic made the whole terrain of relationships very hard to navigate. First off, women felt cut off; they simply couldn't get together for coffee or at church or in their small groups, all those daily/weekly rhythm-of-life ways. (Online was a band-aid, but online is just not the same as being face-to-face). To make matters more complicated, it was hard to know what was “right” and “wrong,” who wanted to social distance, who felt strongly about masks...all that. The rich, life-giving relational world of women was made very hard, and women suffered. They are still suffering.

For men, we need to know we can make a difference when things get hard. Men want to feel powerful, effective; we want to come through. But in the pandemic, we were simply told to go home and do...nothing. It was frustrating, emasculating; you saw a lot of anger in men. We could feel there was a battle to be fought, we just didn’t know what the battle was exactly or how to fight. The hearts of men took a real beating over the last year. And these are just two examples among many.

This is why I am really, really grateful we can announce to you two new programs we are offering called The Wild at Heart Experience and The Captivating Experience. 

Last year we created two new film series, one each for men and women—gorgeous, deep, six-part series guiding women and men through the recovery of their hearts. Using those series as the centerpiece, we’ve created a six-week “experience” that you can partake of for free, online. Come and sign up, and you will receive one episode each week of the new film series, together with a reading, scriptures, questions for reflection, and a special podcast that goes with each week’s journey.

You can partake of the “Experiences” simply by coming to www.wildatheart.org/wildatheart or www.wildatheart.org/captivating; or just visit our homepage www.wildatheart.org.

There are many ways to find renewal in your feminine or masculine heart; you can join the “Experience,” or, you can lead a group through the series, or join a group.

We feel this vital offering is right on time, to help us get our hearts back as men and women in a season where we really need refreshing and new strength.

So there you are friends—two offerings from our hearts to yours this month. Homecoming ‘21 on March 6, and the new Wild at Heart Experience and Captivating Experience available on our website anytime starting March 8!

Let’s get some revitalization for the months ahead!
 

John

Download the Wild at Heart February/March newsletter here. 

Be On Your Guard

I’ll cut straight to it; I have a word from God for you:

Be on your guard, so that your hearts will not be weighed down...pray that you will have strength to escape all these things.
(Luke 21:34)

Jesus was warning us about the many intense pressures faced by those called to live through the climax of this age. A word of caution and encouragement we could all use right now.

Good heavens, we’ve just passed through 2020, a year of global trauma. Without a pause to catch our breath and heal, 2021 gets off to a troubled start. New Covid variants, forcing new lockdowns in many places. The American political scene. Lord knows what else (newsletters are slow, but change comes fast; much may have transpired since I wrote this January 13th).

The pressures of this hour are extraordinary. Meaning, way beyond our ordinary. 

None of us have ever lived through a global pandemic, and all the heartache of 2020. As if that weren’t enough, then came the intense political clashes in the US (but not only in the US). Simply navigating what to say, what not to say, and where to get reliable information adds pressure, confusion and alarm upon our already beleaguered souls. Our enemy, seizing the opportunity, jumped on our vulnerable hearts with Fear, Hopelessness, and a host of other things. It’s taken a toll; it is still taking a toll.

Therapists will tell you that putting words to things helps to undo the emotional power and harm of events. That’s partly what I’m trying to do here. But what I really want to get to is the rescue Jesus gave us in Luke 21. 

I’m very concerned for people, including the people of God. So I turned in January to the scriptures for counsel, and that’s when I found myself pouring over and studying Jesus’ words of instruction for an hour like this one.

He did say that as things begin to race towards a climax, it would be very hard on the soul:

“But be on your guard, so that your hearts will not be weighed down with dissipation and drunkenness and the worries of life, and that this day will not come on you suddenly, like a trap; for it will come upon all those who live on the face of all the earth. But stay alert at all times, praying that you will have strength to escape all these things that are going to take place, and to stand before the Son of Man.” (Luke 21:34-36)

O friends, there is such compassion and understanding here; there is also wisdom and instruction for our “escape!”

We all feel the “weighed down.” (When was the last time you had days of feeling lighthearted (lighthearted is one word - not two)?) The Greek word for “weighed down” is Bareo, which means “to burden, weigh down, depress.” Yep. I’ve been right there. Burdened by the “worries of life,” which we have more than enough coming at us. There is a truckload of depression out there, along with fear and hopelessness. We are hard-pressed on every side, and our hearts are being weighed down. 

The good news is, if Jesus warned us about it, then he believed there was a way out. “Weighed down” does not have to be our fate; it is not inevitable. Really.

Jesus tells us to ask for strength. The Greek is Katischuo and it means, “to be strong to another's detriment, to prevail against; to be superior in strength; to overcome; to prevail.” It implies a fight, an enemy we can and will prevail over. The only other time the word is used in the New Testament is in Matthew, where Jesus promises that the forces of hell will not “prevail against,” or “overcome” his church:

And I also say to you that you are Peter, and upon this rock I will build My church; and the gates of Hades will not overpower it. (Matthew 16:18)

This is no coincidence, that Katischuo is used only in these two verses. The powers of hell are trying to crush the human heart, especially the hearts of Jesus’ followers. The strength God urges us to ask for is a combative strength, a strength to win the fight, to overcome.

Which is exactly what we need right now. We need strength of heart, strength of mind, strength of spirit. A strength that prevails against all these forces we see around us.

And, Jesus says there is a means of escape. Wouldn't you love an escape from all the madness? Okay then––here is the plan: 

1. Be on your very best guard, knowing that all this madness is designed to weigh your heart down. It doesn’t have to win. Do not fixate on the “worries of life,” yours or the world’s. Do not turn to alcohol or anything else that “dissipates” your heart.

2. Stay alert, praying often (I suggest daily) for “the strength that prevails,” so that you may escape the intensity of the hour. We can’t do it in ourselves; we need a source of inner strength. God offers it, so ask, ask ask!

We can do this together, friends. With Jesus. And one another.

Love,

John

Download the Wild at Heart January 2021 newsletter here.