Month: November 2021

The Beauty of Connection

Posted on by Wendy
Sometimes the smallest gestures can foster connection.

My day job includes work as an academic advisor at a university. The students have to make an appointment with me before they can register for the next semester. I always give them the option to meet with me over zoom or in person in my office. Many of them choose zoom. After almost two years of the convenience of not having to actually go to meetings, they like the idea of meeting in their dorm room or apartment. It’s less awkward and it takes little to no effort on their part.

I think we have all been there.

They get the same information that the students who come to my office get, but they don’t get the connection. There’s something about meeting with people face-to-face that makes relationships more genuine.

I keep a bowl of Jolly Ranchers on my desk and I always offer the students one on their way out. It’s so fun to watch them smile and pick their favorite flavor. It’s an unexpected treat and I have never had anyone turn the candy down. In fact, I have had a few of them that stop in to say hello from time to time and I always offer them another one. They always accept.

It’s such a small thing, sharing a piece of candy, but after a pandemic that had people separated for so long, little gestures seem to go a long way. Connection goes a long way.

Those Jolly Ranchers got me to thinking about connection and church. I think maybe many of us have found ourselves still participating in virtual church. Year after year, Sunday after Sunday, we got up and got dressed and went to church and then a pandemic hit and everything went virtual. Don’t get me wrong, the ability to worship virtually was a gift, but now for many of us, it’s become convenient. It’s easier than getting up and getting dressed. It’s easier than leaving the house. It’s easier than dealing with people, but are we missing connection?

There’s something incredibly powerful when God’s people come together to worship Him. There’s connection with Him and with each other. If we actively sought connection both physically and spiritually and spent more time face-to-face instead of in cyberspace, what would our world look like?

We might be pleasantly surprised. A bowl of Jolly Ranchers reminded me that the beauty of connection is worth the work and inconvenience. Perhaps you needed reminding too.

Have an awesome day!

Wendy 🙂

Called to Bear Witness

Posted on by Wendy
“The Lord is close to the brokenhearted and saves those who are crushed in spirit.” Psalm 34:18

Last week was a rough week for my family. We lost our 14 year old dog, Sandy to a stroke. I suspected that his time was growing short, but his passing still caught me by surprise. When my children were in school, he was my constant companion. When I worked from home for a year during Covid, he was always on his bed next to my desk. He had been a big part of my life for a long time.

I almost didn’t write a post this week because it’s just been a depressing week, but then my daily devotion changed my mind. I’m reading Acts and Paul was sharing what he knew about Jesus. The writer of that day’s devotion said, ” Like Paul, we are also called to bear witness to what we’ve seen. What have you seen today that speaks of God? What have you seen that you can share with others?”

I felt convicted.

While it had been a hard week, I was thankful for all of the years we had with Sandy. He literally showed up at our house and brought my family so much joy and I caught a glimpse of God.

This week, when we had to take him to the vet, one of my sweet co-workers texted me to see how I was doing and I saw God. The next day at work when another sweet co-worker emailed me and told me she had been praying for me, I saw God and when she came to my office just to give me a hug, I saw God again.

When our newest edition, Annie, met me at the door after work, wagging her tail, and bouncing up and down with pure puppy joy, I saw God once again and I was completely humbled by the fact that He knew a month ago, when we decided to adopt her, that Sandy was going to be passing. He knew our hearts would be broken and He knew she would bring us comfort.

As I was walking at work the next day, I couldn’t help but be in awe of fall the leaves on trees. The seasons are changing and we are entering into a season of Thanksgiving and even though I feel a little raw, I am thankful, thankful that God made dogs, thankful that He made Sandy, thankful that He sent us Annie and especially thankful for the friends and family that He has surrounded me with who regularly show His love and grace.

To answer the earlier question, even in a particularly painful week, I saw tons of examples of God’s presence and in the end, I felt called to share.

Have an awesome day!

Wendy 🙂

A Reminder to Plant

Posted on by Wendy
We never know when we are planting seeds.

Last Sunday at church, right after we began singing our first praise song, a young family slipped in and sat in the pew in front of us. They had two young girls with them and they were clearly tired and frazzled.

The older of the two girls sat down beside her mama, but the younger one rolled around in the pew, much to her daddy’s dismay. He handed her a pen and his bulletin, but she wasn’t interested in singing or sitting  down. When the song ended and we were asked to greet one another I leaned over and asked her what she was going to be for Halloween. She grinned and said, “Supergirl.”

I smiled, remembering those days.

We sang more songs and she squirmed more. When it was time for the offering, I leaned over and handed her a visitor’s card that I had drawn a jack-o’-lantern on. She was delighted and ran over to show her daddy. Later, she left her seat and went up the aisle. Her parents were not amused and I’m sure they wished that had have been able to sit further towards the back. During our final song, the little girl gave me a picture she had drawn on the bulletin. I smiled and thanked her. She grinned proudly and then she went off to children’s church.

Her parents visibly relaxed.

I thought of that little girl during the entire service and how hard it can be to parent young children. I remembered the days of trying to get my own kids dressed and out the door for church. I remembered being stressed and annoyed and sometimes even questioning if taking them to church was worth the hassle. Were they learning anything at all?

Of course in hindsight, it was absolutely worth it. I will never regret taking our children to church even if some of those Sundays were complete chaos. I’m a big believer in planting seeds and there’s not much more fertile ground than the hearts of littles.

After we sang our last song, I went over to those young parents and said hello. I told them they were doing a great job. The mom seemed surprised. I told them that I remembered how hard it was to get little ones to church and I remembered the stress and the rushing. She nodded and agreed that it was hard. I assured them that these days will fly by and what they were doing  mattered. They seemed truly grateful to hear those few small words of encouragement.

As I look at my gift of art from a restless child, I am reminded that being a part of the Body of Christ is so much more than showing up to church, singing a few songs and leaving. It’s about seed planting. We all are given many opportunities to plant seeds. Will they be seeds of encouragement, kindness and affirmation or seeds that foster doubt and judgement, or will we decide not to plant anything at all and just stand by in silence?

A little girl reminded me that we all need to be in the seed planting business. Perhaps you needed reminding too.

Have an Awesome Day!

Wendy 🙂