Heather Holleman's Blog, page 213

Little Treasures Just for You

I’ve been writing this week about how to experience life as God’s treasured possession. I happened to walk into a tiny little thrift store that’s just opened in our town, and I find all of these treasures--as if they were put there just for me. A new spring jacket from a store I love but only window shop in, my favorite perfume, even a face serum I love but can never afford. It was as if Someone mined my heart for all the little things I had been wanting but would never buy.

And here they all were, so inexpensive I kept asking the owner, “Are you sure? Are you sure?”

I felt so treasured with this lavish display of what felt like God’s love for me in a language I understood.

 

Living in Hope

What I love about March is that promise of spring. You can tell the world shifted; the sun feels brighter and warmer; the snow melts; everything sits in expectation for growth.

But it’s still quite cold. It’s such a strange in-between state: What I perceive in the light doesn’t match the reality of the cold wind.

Isn’t it always this way in life? I choose to live in the hope that new light promises. I leave the house for an afternoon walk, bundled tightly against the lingering winter. But I tilt my face to the sun. I know what’s real.

A Peek Into My Children’s Ministry Life for March

Well, I did it. I agreed to serve as the Storyteller for the month of March for the children of our church.

I dressed up like Abraham (ancient robe and a burgundy sash to match my glasses and lipstick–hey, I had to have some fashion sense) and told the story of Abraham parting ways with Lot. I carried a walking stick that confused the children into thinking I was Moses. Some called out, “It’s Moses! It’s Moses!”

I corrected them and told my story: Abraham gave Lot the good land to make peace. My “good land” props included a bean bag and restful pillow along with a picnic basket of random plastic food that would have never been available: pancake mix, sushi, and even some plastic bottled milk. The good land would have a giant stuffed Dalmatian dog, too, for reasons I cannot explain to you.

My land to the west was a pile of rocks on the stage. One child was Abraham and sat on the rocks. This must not have been comfortable. Another child was Lot and lounged in the bean bag.

I tried my best.

The lesson was all about what Abraham must have known about God in order to give up the “good land” and trust in God’s provision.

I carried the giant stuffed dog to help me tell my story, and I let the kindergarten children pet the dog. The dog had nothing to do with my story, but his presence somehow made the children listen. What I lacked in historical accuracy, I made up for in the truth that Abraham trusted God to love him, care for him, and lead him. And God could see ahead to what Abraham and Lot could not see.

One older child called out, “Lot was living near Sodom!”

I had failed to bring props for Sodom.

In the end, I learned that I loved the children as they filed past me to pet the stuffed dog. I loved how they all agreed that it was OK to give the good land away because God would take care of Abraham. The “good land” of more toys, less chores, and all the prizes that everyone else gets in life? Well, maybe the real good land is wherever God’s presence is. I hope they learned this.

I did.

(Maybe they’re just thinking about the dog. I’m not sure.)

Next week, I’m introducing them to Isaac. Whatever shall I wear?

All the Restful Things

I lately cultivate a love of restful things. It feels like a lost art form in our increasingly full life.

I gather books—A Wrinkle in Time and Redeeming Love—and make space to read in a cozy place.

I attempt to nap. I take a bath. I pet the cats. I make tea.

It feels restorative and important to nurture a philosophy of rest.

A Quiet Heart

I return to the marvelous practice of writing down every single thing troubling my heart. In the prayer journal, I write down the specific request with space to record when and how God answers. In the evening or the next morning, I fill in all the divine activity I observe.

I move through the day, settled and quiet in my heart because I’ve cast my cares upon Him, and He cares for me (1 Peter 5:7).

 

You Have the Essential Thing

Today I remember a post on this very day 4 years ago called, “What I Am Afraid of Losing.” 

On some days, I find myself begging God to display His mercy in my life so I will not have to suffer greatly. As I grow in maturity and grow in faith and dependence on God, I still worry about pain and suffering in the form of losing loved ones.

I’m willing to let God control and direct all things about my life, but I still say, “Oh, but please be merciful! Please!”

I find such a comforting truth in Jacques Philippe’s Searching for and Maintaining Peace: A Small Treatise on Peace of Heart. My wise counselor recommended this years ago as I battled daily anxiety and fear.

Philippe writes, “The Lord can leave us wanting relative to certain things (sometimes judged indispensable in the eyes of the world), but He never leaves us deprived of what is essential: His presence, His peace, and all that is necessary for the complete fulfillment of our lives, according to His plans for us.”

I find great comfort in the truth that God never deprives us of what is essential. And that, with God’s power–by faith–I learn more and more to hope against all hope when I experience suffering.

Just Two Hours

A radio host recently asked me for my best advice for aspiring writers.

I said, “write.”

I know it’s a terrible thing to say, but I meant it. I know too many of us who have a burning desire to write a book that’s in us, but we cannot get it out of us.

I suggest writing for two hours a day. Make an appointment with yourself. After two hours, stop. You’re finished for the day. Stop when it’s going great, and you’ll pick up tomorrow. You might argue that you don’t have two hours to give away to writing. Trust me: you do!

In those two hours, if you wrote just a thousand words (about 3 pages), you’d have the word count for an average manuscript in just forty days. 

Think of it this way: if you want to become a runner, there’s no use continuing to read books about running, visit the races of other runners, or ask advice from your running friends. Just lace up your shoes and hit the pavement. Run! You’ll gain what you need along the way.

Schedule your two hours, and see what comes of it. I’m so excited for you!

Prayers to Live By: Psalm 141

This morning I read Psalm 141 and note the wise requests of David. Written during a time of distress, this psalm shows us David’s focus. I love the way David thinks of God. He asks God to do 10 things that we might also pray today:

In verse 1, David asks for the Lord to come quickly and to hear him.
In verse 2, David asks that his prayer is pleasing to God as an acceptable sacrifice .
In verse 3, David asks that God would guard his speech.
In verse 4, David asks that his heart not be drawn to what is evil.
In verse 5, David asks for righteous men to correct him when he needs it.
In verse 6, David asks that his words will prove correct in the face of evil.
In verse 7, David asks that the wicked would understand their destiny.
In verse 8, David asks for safety since his eyes are fixed on God.
In verse 9, David asks that he not fall into any traps or snares
In verse 10, David asks that the wicked instead will fall into these traps.

Psalm 141
A psalm of David.

1 I call to you, Lord, come quickly to me;

    hear me when I call to you.

2 May my prayer be set before you like incense;

    may the lifting up of my hands be like the evening sacrifice.

3 Set a guard over my mouth, Lord;

    keep watch over the door of my lips.

4 Do not let my heart be drawn to what is evil

    so that I take part in wicked deeds

along with those who are evildoers;

    do not let me eat their delicacies.

5 Let a righteous man strike me—that is a kindness;

    let him rebuke me—that is oil on my head.

My head will not refuse it,

    for my prayer will still be against the deeds of evildoers.

6 Their rulers will be thrown down from the cliffs,

    and the wicked will learn that my words were well spoken.

7 They will say, “As one plows and breaks up the earth,

    so our bones have been scattered at the mouth of the grave.”

8 But my eyes are fixed on you, Sovereign Lord;

    in you I take refuge—do not give me over to death.

9 Keep me safe from the traps set by evildoers,

    from the snares they have laid for me.

10 Let the wicked fall into their own nets,

    while I pass by in safety.

The Thermos Soup They Love

Lately my daughters and I all take the same delicious soup to school / work in our lunchbox thermos. It’s such an easy crockpot recipe that will serve you all week long.

To your crockpot, add:

two boxes chicken broth
the meat pulled from one grocery store, plain rotisserie chicken
one bag frozen sweet corn kernels
one bag frozen cauliflower
three cups chopped celery
two tablespoons parsley
one tablespoon thyme
two tablespoons dried minced onion
1 teaspoon salt (or more to taste)
1 teaspoon pepper

Heat in crockpot for several hours until celery and frozen vegetables are cooked. Cool and store in the fridge. Reheat each morning and put a serving in your thermos. So good!

When You Quote Your Own 7th Grade Teacher

My 7th grader asks me for tips on public speaking for her speech due tomorrow. Her teacher calls this a 3-5 minute TED talk. I’m lounging next to her bed as she puts the final touches on her document on her laptop. I had just returned the night before from a speaking event in South Carolina.

How different my 7th grade life was without laptops and TED talks! Yet I have some advice to offer from decades before–from 1988–when I sat with a notepad and pencil in Mrs. Ellen Phillips’ Speech class at Carl Sandburg Middle School.

Oh, how I loved that wonderful woman!

I stand up before my daughter and dramatically position my hands by my sides in a ready position to begin speaking. I tell her what Mrs. Phillips told me two decades ago. “Three things, Kate: Eyes, Hands, and Feet. You make eye contact around the room. You make hand gestures that match what your sentence says. You move to the right, left, and then the middle as you accentuate key points. And then, you chose a key word in each sentence to emphasize. You have to modulate your voice.”

I can’t believe I remember so clearly that year of Speech class and then the personal weekly coaching of Mrs. Phillips as I began to compete in oratory competitions that year. I wrote speeches for the Optimist Oratory Club, and Mrs. Phillips went with me to every competition–on weeknights, on weekends, and then even traveling across the state when I advanced from Districts to Regionals and then to States. I wore a dress my mother sewed for me, and I remember the weight of the medals placed around my neck for each prize-winning speech.

The whole time, Mrs. Phillips coached me. She taught me about poise and power and winning and losing graciously. Why? Why me? Why then? I was 12 years old and spending every day memorizing speeches I titled, “Destiny! Choice Not Chance” and “Challenge the Summit.” My parents cheered me on as I paced around the house to work on Eyes, Hands, Feet, and that accentuated key word. I became an expert in speech writing and memorization.

And it was all because of her.

Mrs. Phillips was the best coach I ever had. Bless her. I thought of her all day as I stood before my own daughter, as Mrs. Phillips stood before me, and passed on her legacy. And how could Mrs. Phillips ever know that I would one day speak on stages all over the nation as part of my career? Of all my teachers, today I am most thankful for her.