Heather Holleman's Blog, page 41

Adding in Praise

Sometimes I’m so concerned with “casting my cares upon the Lord” (1 Peter 5:7) and praying for others that I forget the joy and wonder of praising God. This morning, I looked up again a list of God’s divine attributes, and I talked to Him and praised Him for who He is. It felt like a marvelous time of lifting my eyes above my circumstances and above the concerns of our planet to the eternal.

You can find many websites that list God’s attributes, but the one I enjoyed this morning that helped direct my thoughts best was this: “15 Amazing Attributes of God: What They Mean and Why They Matter” from Bible Study Tools.

I thought about God as self-existent, omnipotent, omnipresent, loving, unchanging, self-sufficient, omniscient, wise, faithful, good, holy, merciful, just, and infinitely beautiful. When I praise God, nothing else seems more important or more worthwhile. Perhaps it’s because our hearts are made to worship Him.

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4 More Great Questions

Since I collect great questions, I love it when someone sends me fresh ones to ask my students or friends. Yesterday, my sister sent me a link to a post called “57 Questions to Ask On Someone’s 50th Birthday” from The Organized Mom site. I imagined how many wonderful conversations I could have with these four questions alone:

What’s the worst haircut you���ve ever had?

What���s the most daring thing you���ve ever done?

What is your favorite unsolved mystery?

Do you collect anything?

If I were to begin, I’d first tell you the story of the time I chopped all my hair off for the “feathered look” of the 80’s. Then I’d tell you the story of the “mom haircut” I tried in 2000. Oh my goodness. We’d laugh about your bad haircuts. I might then ask you about who killed JonBenet Ramsey. We would share theories. (I don’t love the word “favorite” regarding unsolved crimes. I think maybe “troubling” works better).

I might also share about my collection of turtle figurines or beautiful journals.

The most daring thing? I’m still thinking about this. You?

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The Thank You in Sausages

A fantastic student stops by with Dominican sausages from her father’s company. This was, in part, her thank you for how I wrote her graduate school recommendations. I was so delighted! It’s rare that a student sends a thank you note or gift like this for writing recommendations, but when it happens, I’m smiling all day. I have a plant given as a thank you from a student, for example, that I pass by daily and remember our time in class together. The gesture reminds me of the power of a nice thank you. Once, a student brought a bag of self-care products for me. Another time, it was coffee. I’ll take it! Who doesn’t love a little thank you gift?

While I do love gifts, mostly, I love the joy of teaching and connecting with students–not just because their dad owns a sausage company. Here we are with my armload of Dominican sausages.

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Your Top Ones

Today I loved asking my students about their top artist and song from Spotify Wrapped. Students love music, and it’s a great way to connect to ask a question about music. If you’re with a young person, ask them about their Spotify Wrapped. Ask them this: “Who was your top artist? What was your top song?” They’ll light up. And you’ll learn a lot about music. (If you’re new to Spotify or don’t use it, it’s a music app that will give you a summary of your music listening habits over the past year. Every Dec. 1, you’ll have your Spotify Wrapped.)

Of course, one or two students out of 50 might not use Spotify, but they can still ponder what they think might have been their top song or top artist of the year. Every student I have this year loves music. And they love talking about it. You’ll have a great conversation.

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The Coolest Thing I Learned Today

This morning, I learned something so cool from Tara Leigh Cobble’s Bible Recap Podcast on Joshua 17-18. In a discussion about the allotment of land for the Israelites around Jerusalem, she reminds us how God once said that He would make His name to dwell in Jerusalem (2 Chronicles 6:6).

The name of God–and the initial by which the Israelites would recall Him–is Shin. It’s a letter that looks sort of like a crooked W. It appears in the mezuzah that Jewish families were instructed to put on the doorframes of their houses in Deuteronomy. That letter referred to God’s name.

Well, when you look at a topographical map of Jerusalem, you’ll see that the mountains and valleys form a perfect Shin, literally, on the land. You can see more pictures and learn more about the letter Shin in the notes to the podcast here. But here is the topography.

Topography / Jerusalem–the Letter Shin from Promised Land Ministries, WordPress.

The letter Shin also appears, astonishingly, in the shape of the human heart. In Ephesians 3:17, we read Paul’s prayer that Christ would dwell in our hearts through faith. Here you see it:

These kinds of images make me overflow with worship to our clever Creator who wrote His name in the Promised Land and in our hearts where He longs to dwell. We are made in His likeness, stamped with His name.

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The Daily Challenge

I love learning about other people and how they live. Today I learned about a student who loves to challenge himself. He deliberately puts himself into challenging situations, and if it’s not challenging enough, he figures out a way to make it challenging. It’s joyful for him to run six miles a day, for example, to make his bed every morning, to take harder classes, or even add a major or minor to make sure he’s challenging himself. He’ll choose a paper topic that’s not too easy. That’s not joyful to do the easy thing.

As we spoke, I considered this way of living. I wondered why some people enjoy a challenge and others shrink from it. I’ve talked to other students who love challenges. One student told me she’s been challenging herself since elementary school because it’s fun; it’s a game to try to win each day. Her eyes sparkled as she talked about going above and beyond the minimum requirements of a class. For fun. For joy. For the feeling of winning a challenge. Could I try to live more like my student and consider the challenges of the day with joy? Could I challenge myself? It’s interesting that your challenge, in this case, is with yourself.

Today, I’m challenging myself to finish grading, to walk 2-3 miles, and to encourage at least 5 people. I challenge myself to drink enough water. I challenge myself to do something hard that I don’t want to do–whatever that thing is. At the end of the day, I want to measure the joy of rising to a challenge.

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Season of Slow

I love the cold weather. It’s oatmeal season for me. I love cooking steel-cut oats with cinnamon, a chunk of frozen banana (to sweeten it!), pecans, and a little salt. When you cook these kinds of oats, you’ll stand around in the kitchen to stir the pot for a good 20-30 minutes. It’s a slow kind of breakfast. When it’s ready, I top the oatmeal with fresh berries and maybe a bit more cinnamon.

Cozy. Warm. Slow. ‘Tis the season!

Armed with my steaming bowl of oatmeal, I’m ready to pray and read the Bible. I’m ready to cast my concerns, to listen, and to thank.

Today I’m thankful for slow things. Jesus was never in a hurry. I like to think about that as I eat my oatmeal as the sun rises on a cold Pennsylvania morning.

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Your Cyber Monday Deal from Moody Publisher

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Another World

I continue to think about living as someone waiting for the kingdom of heaven. I recalled the quote by C.S. Lewis that, when I first heard it, oddly comforted me. I think about this quote so much, especially when the holidays leave us a little sad. He wrote this: ���If we find ourselves with a desire that nothing in this world can satisfy, the most probable explanation is that we were made for another world.���

I kept thinking of us as made for “another world” as I turned to my book on prayer by W. Duewell. In a section about sacrifice and self-denial in order to follow God, Duewell describes the day John Wesley visited a wealthy man’s home. He describes that Wesley, “while being shown through a nobleman’s house, admired the expensive works of art and other symbols of wealth and culture.” Wesley said this: “I too could love these things, but there is another world.”

There is another world. Do we really believe it?

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Two Grammar Tips

I love thinking about grammar. I love helping people understand it. Here are two tips for you.

The colon replaces words like “such as” or “includes.” You don’t need both. So you’d write this: I enjoy many pies such as pumpkin, cherry, and pecan. Or you’d try this: I enjoy many pies: pumpkin, cherry, pecan.

The semicolon connects two complete sentences that relate to each other. To remember this, ask yourself if you could use the word “because” instead of the semicolon. Like this: We traveled by car instead for Thanksgiving; the prices of flights increased significantly.

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