Michele Cushatt's Blog, page 3
June 8, 2020
Racism, the Gospel, and the Healing We Need
When Jesus launched his public ministry, he did so by quoting the words of Isaiah 61. Rather than talk about his greatness, he let everyone know who he came for:
The Spirit of the Lord is on me,
because he has anointed me
to proclaim good news to the poor.
He has sent me to proclaim freedom for the prisoners
and recovery of sight for the blind,
to set the oppressed free,
to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor. (Luke 4:18-19)
The poor.
The prisoners.
The blind.
The oppressed.
Make no mistake: you ...
May 26, 2020
Relentless Podcast, Episode 6: “Lost in the wilderness without a canteen…”
I remember it like it was yesterday…
Certain memories seem to play in technicolor. These are the ones you can see, smell, feel for years. Where the terror hangs heavy and every hair on your body stands at attention. Physical trauma has a way of marking our memories in this way, and surprisingly enough, emotional trauma sure can hold its own, too.
This memory is one of the vivid ones. I was finally cancer free, again,...
May 12, 2020
Relentless Podcast, Episode 5: “For the one who can’t see past the pain…”
Confession: I am far crueler to myself in my own head than I would ever dare be to a friend.
Anyone else?
Who are you to lead anyone else when you can barely lead your own family?
Who are you to speak up when someone else could say it better?
Who are you to preach Gods grace when you struggle to simply love your own people?
Do the questions accusations sound familiar?
In chapter 3 of Relentless, I tell the story from...
April 28, 2020
Relentless Podcast, Episode 4: A God Who Promises To Be With You
Wouldnt it be nice if conversations about our shared experiences were about how much we love
Ice cream? Aisle 7
Or Pop-Tarts? Aisle 3
Or puppies? Wrong store
Wouldnt it be nice if the only things that connected us included happy words like sunshine or sandy beaches or mountain getaway? Instead, Im willing to bet most of you have been around long enough to know the sting of betrayal, the paralysis of bad news, the pain of a...
April 22, 2020
When Peace Is What You Need Most of All
It was the final weeks of 2019 when I made a plan for 2020. Part of that plan included the launch of the Relentless Podcast, whereby Id release a new audio and video episode every other week throughout the year. I recorded all the content and then I scheduled the posts. Hallelujah, I was ahead of the game.
Then, by early March, the plans Id so carefully crafted were overturned by a global pandemic and a virus called COVID. In the span of days, trauma left its mark on the world. And the prior...
March 24, 2020
Relentless Podcast, Episode 3: What to believe when, “Everything happens for a reason” is no longer reason enough.
There it was again. That phrase. The one intended to bring comfort in a time of chaos.
Everything happens for a reason.
They mean well, I tell myself again. Sometimes our pain proves too heavy for loved ones to hold; so they shift under the weight, reaching for the nearest phrase that seems to tie the bloody up with a bow.
But what if there arent any cute clichés that can...
March 10, 2020
Relentless Podcast, Episode 2: 6 Strategies When You’re Not Okay
How many times have you heard these words fall from your mouth?
“ …I’m fine.”
Maybe even today.
As the husband walks out, the friend bails, the doctor calls, the child slams the door, the unpaid bills pile up on the counter, the loved one grows weaker…
“I’m fine. It’s fine. We’re fine.”
It was a typical Tuesday morning. I woke up, ran a quick 4 miles, and spent time reading my Bible, praying, and journaling. As the day...
February 25, 2020
Relentless Podcast, Episode 1: Welcome
Have you ever found yourself buried by darkness? Sitting on the floor weighted down by a darkness you can feel, arms wrapped tightly around your knees, wondering how much longer you have before all the oxygen is siphoned from the room?
Do you know the place? The one where the pain in your chest meets the ache of your weary soul and you wonder deep down if you will actually drown under all that weight.
I’m too tired. I can’t swim anymore.
Do you know...
February 11, 2020
ANNOUNCEMENT: A New Resource For Those Searching For God
Tomorrow marks three months since Relentless released into the world. Never have I poured so much of my truest self into a project. In spite of my initial trepidation about such raw transparency, I knew it was absolutely necessary:
People are suffering, Michele. They’re lost in a dark that is taking them down. They think God has left them. If you want to help, you’ll have to walk down into the dark with them.
In a world filled with such pain and complexity, we need more than trite cliches and...
December 23, 2019
Advent Week 4: PEACE In His Presence
This is the last installment of my Advent series centered around my new book,Relentless: The Unshakeable Presence of a God Who Never Leaves (Zondervan, 2019). For four weeks, I’ve shared excerpts from Relentless, because its core message is the message of Advent: God has come and God is coming. Both-and. We sit in a waiting space, eyes to the sky waiting for our Redeemer to come again, to right all wrongs and heal all wounds. Still, we know the end of the story. That means, even while we...
