Heather Holleman's Blog, page 35

Among Other Things

Among so many other things in life, I cannot control this little orchid. It blooms and blooms, year after year���sometimes in summer, sometimes in March, sometimes right now. I hardly water it. I can’t make anything happen when it comes to this orchid. It obeys some other voice that tells it when to bloom and how.

Among other things, the orchid reminds me that I live in mystery, that I control nothing, and that things that should bloom one day will. I just have very little to do with it all.

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Ending the Psalms and Starting Fresh in February

I’m so thrilled that this marks the last day of January and tomorrow starts a fresh month in the Psalms. My neighbors in Pennsylvania always brace themselves for January; it’s a cold, dark month. But we did it! We’re here, and now we march on into February. May God bless us all richly in February.

As I ended my monthly reading of the Psalms, I wrote this in my journal from Psalm 149: 5-6:

Let the godly exult in glory;
    let them sing for joy on their beds.
Let the high praises of God be in their throats
    and two-edged swords in their hands

I note the contrast between a joyful, resting person on her bed and someone holding a sword, ready to fight. What a picture of a life of faith! We rest in Jesus while also standing, demolishing strongholds, and praying victoriously. We are simultaneously joyfully resting and eagerly battling the enemy.

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Because He Put You There

Today I talked to friends about how often we feel insecure in our various professional roles. I remembered the email a Cru leader in Faculty Commons (our graduate student and professor ministry) emailed to all the professors at the beginning of the semester years ago. He said we aren’t in our roles because we’re the smartest, the most equipped, the most talented, or anything else. We’re where we are because God put us there. Who can argue with that? What freedom and confidence that idea brought!

I think of John 15 and how Jesus says He chose us and appointed us to bear fruit. I remember today how, when any feelings of insecurity creep up, I tell myself and others, “You’re here because God put you here!” There’s fruit to bear.

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Quiet Confidence

This morning, I loved thinking about Isaiah 30:15 in various translations. I like this one from the Berean Standard Bible: For the Lord GOD, the Holy One of Israel, has said: ���By repentance and rest you would be saved; your strength would lie in quiet confidence.”

Two things stick out to me: rest and quiet confidence. Mostly, I like to do things. But here, God says to turn back to Him and away from sin (repentance) and essentially relax (rest). And instead of clamoring about, fretting, manipulating, complaining, or fearing, God says to have “quiet confidence.” These three���repentance, rest, and quiet confidence���counter my day of doing. Instead, I rest in Jesus. I ask Him to make me the kind of person who walks around with quiet confidence.

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Blue Skies and Sunshine

Today the neighbors headed outside. With slightly warmer temperatures, blue skies, and sunshine, we walk about on sidewalks glistening from snowmelt. The world is so bright from the sun reflecting off the snow on lawns that we wear sunglasses and shield our eyes with our hands.

The snow makes the sunshine brighter than ever. And the recent dark and cloudy days make the contrast even more extreme. I love the beauty of contrasts. I will remember this bright, bright day when we’re back in deep, gray winter. The sun will come, and it will seem so much more glorious for what we’ve endured.

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A Time for Everything

Today I took comfort in Ecclesiastes 3:1: There is a time��for everything, and a season for every activity under the heavens. In January in Pennsylvania, my friend and I talk about living like hibernating bears. She tells me to “take my cues from nature” and do what the bears do.

Everything slows down. We burrow into blankets and settle in like bears. We aren’t inventive or inspired. We are slow and cozy.

As someone who loves my next project, I’m always caught off guard by hibernating me. As January begins to come to a close, I start to stir. Shouldn’t I be writing another book? Shouldn’t I be planning something? Shouldn’t I be out more? More social? More lively? Maybe you feel this way and wonder why you’re just lounging about in January. It’s because you’ve been living a great life like a bear in January.

Yesterday I walked in the snowfall, lumbering like a bear. That was the work of the day in my opinion.

As the afternoon gently rolled on, I remembered Ecclesiastes. There’s a time for big activity and fast-paced living. There’s a time for innovation and lots of gatherings. Normally, that’s May or October for me. But January? I’m warming my body and living like a bear. I’m stirring a bit in anticipation of February’s work, but mostly, I’m living like a bear.

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Your Best Day

This morning I read a beautiful quote by Dannah Gresh: “Your hardest day with Jesus by your side is always better than your best day without Him.”

I immediately remembered Joni Eareckson Tada’s words (spoken at a conference) to a similar effect: “I’d rather be seated in this wheelchair knowing Jesus than be given the chance to walk without Him.”

I think about my best day and how, without Jesus, it wouldn’t compare to the worst day with Him. I find myself comforted, strengthened, and full of hope.

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Fun Little 1950’s Desserts

This winter, I’m trying out some fun 1950’s desserts. I love having pretty little dessert treats to help us through the dreary January days. I found this cute website listing all the most popular desserts of the 1950’s.

Since one daughter will endure wisdom tooth surgery, the soft, layered jello desserts will come in handy!

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3 Things to Add to Any Classroom

As I learn more and more about teaching and how to prepare a brain to receive and remember information, I added three key components to my college classroom: more fun, more hands-on activities, and more choice. I’m learning that, just like anything you don’t want to do, it you make it more fun, it’s more easy to endure. As you know, I teach advanced writing, so the potential for boredom surely exists!

This semester, I added in more fun including elements of more music, more student interaction, more games, and more random things like making a slideshow of everyone’s pets and bringing in unexpected treats. I have a colleague that always features a joke of the day before class starts. I love that! So remember: more fun.

For more hands-on work to get their bodies involved, I’m doing more crafty things like drawing out concepts or folding paper to organize information for a project. One professor I know invites a different student to lead a mid-class dance. Even simply getting students to take a walk around campus to talk with their peer group matters for learning.

For more choice, I’m allowing students to customize some assignments to what best fits them. I’m also allowing them to choose the kinds of persuasive modes they want whether video, presentations, or writing for some projects. I’m learning how good it makes a student feel when they enjoy some control over the syllabus, too. After two years of feeling so helpless and out-of-control with the pandemic, choice feels nice.

I’m evolving as a professor, and so far, so good.

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Wisdom on Wisdom

As I read and delighted in Psalm 119 this morning, I paused and asked God for the very wisdom the priest mentions:

Oh, how I love your law!
��������I meditate��on it all day long.
Your commands are always with me
��������and make me wiser��than my enemies.
��I have more insight than all my teachers,
��������for I meditate on your statutes.
I have more understanding than the elders,
��������for I obey your precepts (97-100).

I notice that knowing and obeying God’s commands brings wisdom. When we walk according to the scriptures, we gain wisdom and insight and understanding that surpass the enemies, the teachers, and the elders around us.

What do we need wisdom for? Think about the words we’ll speak; the decisions before us; the thoughts we’ll think; the temptations we’ll avoid; the projects we’ll pursue. For everything: wisdom.

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