A Place of Healing - Eleanor Shepherd

           Last Saturday, I was privileged to perform a wedding ceremony in Kingston, Ontario, about a three-hour drive from Montreal.  The couple had been transferred to Kingston by the military. We came to know them in Montreal, where they became a part of our lives.

           

           

Their wedding included Ukrainian traditions, honouring the Ukrainian roots of the groom’s family. However, a contrasting tradition was provided by the presence of The Salvation Army Band from Montreal Citadel.

Michael and Wendy met in Kandahar, Afghanistan when both were there with the Canadian military during difficulties in that part of the world. Mike did three tours of duty in Afghanistan and met Wendy during his second tour, through a mutual friend.

            

           Like so many people who serve in battle zones in the armed forces, on his return to Canada, Mike struggled to adapt to noncombat life, trying to learn again to keep his body and mind from moving into high alert at the slightest provocation

          

           A person of deep faith, Mike was suffering with some disillusionment about the lack of grace he found in the church.  One consolation he found was in playing a trumpet. He had received a trumpet for his 25^th birthday, while studying in Leeds, England. It just so happened that the cornet was manufactured in the instrument factory that was run by The Salvation Army, so these words were emblazoned upon it.

          

          Every time Mike picked up the cornet he read The Salvation Army. He describes his experience this way, ‘‘God wanted this blessed instrument to return home and I was to follow. It was the carrot that led the horse to water, and when I arrived I chose to drink the fountain of God’s love to find full healing.’’

           

          Michael made contact The Salvation Army locally and met my husband, Glen who leads the band. When Mike joined the band, both Michael and Wendy began attending the services on Sunday mornings. They made friends of people in the congregation. 

           

          Meanwhile, Wendy was learning how to be an instructor for an exercise and fitness program aimed at addressing the problems of aging. We were looking for someone to lead an exercise program at the church, and Wendy was willing. Tuesday evenings, while Mike was practicing with The Salvation Army band, Wendy was in the basement of The Salvation Army Church helping some of the folks who came to learn a healthy exercise routine.

           

          Beyond the band and exercise group something more profound was happening.  During worship services, sometimes after I deliver the sermon, I invite people to interact with the Biblical message. One morning, after sharing a message about grace, Mike spoke up and shared most eloquently of the way that he had experienced grace, since he and Wendy linked up with our congregation. It is hard to imagine anything more rewarding for a pastor to hear. That  day I knew, that for Michael and Wendy our church had become a place of healing.

            

          That healing was a determining element of their journey – a journey in which God led them from war to love; through music and worship to healing and a wedding that included Ukrainian polkas and a Salvation Army Band.   

Word Guild Award

2011

Word Guild Award

2009

Favour the Familiar/DONNA MANN

I favour the familiar for many reasons and one of them is that I do not expect to recognize it by my last impression. Even though I have a previous picture tucked away in the depth of memory, I am pleasantly surprised at new dimensions, colour and texture when I revisit the familiar.  I could use this opening sentence reflecting on relationships, writing, gardening or buying a car, but in this blog, I want to explore the thought in terms of experience.

Summer is camping season for us. Doug loves to drive and I am content sitting in the passenger seat and taking pictures. It's also a time when we see our province in different seasons - sometimes before the winter wheat breaks through the ground, or after the leaves have fallen and many times between. I particularly like to go to Manitoulan Island and live on island-time. However, I think I could go stand on the banks of the Grand River and remember the rush and roar of the Fraser River in British Columbia, even though they are different kinds of rivers. Somehow, there is a satisfaction in drawing from the views and sceneries in local areas. Although we have travelled across the ocean several times, been to Australia and Alaska, crossed Canada from shore to shore more than once, I favour the familiar and ordinary in driving by something I know like the back of your hand, and seeing a difference from the last time I saw it.

I wonder how this relates to relationships and to healing and feelings of serenity, much needed in a stressful world. I sense that the familiar is therapeutic and even beneficial. Take a farmer for example who has left the farm and moved to a nursing home. Think of the peace and satisfaction he would feel in seeing the earth freshly ploughed and the sea gulls flying back and forth, diving for that worm. Think of the memories that a windmill standing isolated in the middle of a wheat field might raise. Or the pleasures of seeing a child walk through a field with a fishing pole over his shoulder.

We live next door to the house my Grandma and Grandpa owned. As I sit on our deck I see the huge Spruce tree I played under in the 40s. I see the same trees that keep the 85-foot drop to the Irwin River safe from our curiosity and provide a sense of wonder as they ‘clap their hands’ in response to the wind. I look across the village block from end to end and see lawns touch each other, as through the years the neighbours haven’t erected fences. The familiar: peaceful, contentment and good for the soul

“You will go out in joy and be led forth in peace; the mountains and hills will burst into song before you, and all the trees of the field will clap their hands (Isaiah 55:12).

Blessings

Donna

Check out donnamann.org

Growth by Tracy Krauss

Growth. It's this month's prompt and quite apt considering that natural growth is all around us at this time of year. I'm sure that many of you have also experienced a tremendous time of growth this past weekend at Write! Canada.

My own growth as a writer has come in spurts and starts. Sometimes it's been through conferences, like the one that just happened, and sometimes it has been through books, webinars, or other helpful resources. More often than not, however, it has come through failure, mistakes, rejection and other difficult circumstances.

I'm keeping it short and sweet today, since I have other commitments like report cards and end of the school year preparations that are keeping me occupied. But I wanted to take this opportunity, especially after the 'high' of something as wonderful as a writers' conference, to remind you that growth can come in many forms. Don't miss out on every opportunity - both the mountain tops and the valleys.

A Garden of Gratitude by Glynis M Belec

Laughing Lobelia

Satisfied Sage

Merry Mint

Today my garden said 'Thank you!' For weeks the droplets have been scarce or non-existent. This year I have been determined to keep all things hydrated so I have been faithfully watering early morning and late evening. Shoots have been a little thankful, and for the most part I have managed to help ward off sizzling seedlings.                                                                                                                                                                                         But then the rain came. It poured. I opened the patio door and I could almost hear my collective vegetables and flowers singing praise to their Master Gardener. They were thankful that I kept them going but they danced with joy when their Creator lavished them with the waters that would do so much more than sustain.                                                                                                                                                                                  

As I gazed at the gulping earth I thought about how that is so like God. He allows us to have a hand in His creation but ultimately He is in control. Sure my little garden hose might have made a little bit of difference, but for me to cause the garden to come to the intended fruition - it wouldn't have happened. I might have helped a determined bean sprout or a frazzled marigold stay upright.                                                                                                                                                                             But one thing I noticed - every night and every morning, there were signs of exhaustion and drooping and discoloured leaves. The ground remained scorched and parts of my little plants were giving up. What I was doing was good, but it was obviously insufficient.                                                                                                                                                                                                                               This morning was different. There was no drooping. No battle weary fatigue. No signs of retreat. There was a new fragrance - an earthy, warm smell. The sun shone and the once tired plants stood tall saluting the Master Gardener. The green looked lush and vibrant. Pretty pink petunias and laughing lobelia held their heads high and their beauty attracted buzzing bees hungry for sweet pollen. A white cabbage moth circled eyeing the green plant waving in the gentle, warm breeze.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                    That was when I thought about God. It was time I stopped to say thank you to the Master Gardener in my life. Sometimes I am quick to take credit; when my life and every breath I take is ultimately all about God. I plod along and prattle on, forgetting that He is the One who has poured the Water of Life into my days. He sent His son who poured out His blood so I can be here and be a witness to His glory and grace; His forgiveness and peace. He does more for me than sustain me. He offers me His final fruit - eternal life. When I think about that, I feel like dancing in the rain.   

Triumphant Tomato 

Delighted Dill

Stalwart Stevia

   A summer rain brings refreshment and renewed life. Jesus brings us that same kind of rejuvenation in our lives when we turn to Him and trust Him and allow Him to control our weakened state. We are no less worthy because we turn to Him. In fact, when we do turn to Him in all areas of our life, then growth happens. Our roots are made secure. Our core is established. Fruit appears. 

Lettuce pray!

A Garden of Gratitude

Playful Parsley 

I, for one, am happy the Master Gardener is tilling the soil and sending the refreshing rain in my life! 

“And it shall come about, if you listen obediently to my commandments which I am commanding you today, to love the LORD your God and to serve Him with all your heart and all your soul, that He will give the rain for your land in its season, the early and late rain, that you may gather in your grain and your new wine and your oil.”  

Deuteronomy 11:13-14

(Now to get to those pesky weeds that also love the refreshing rain - literally and figuratively) 

Glynis lives, loves, laughs and does an awful lot of reading, writing, publishing and praying in her home office. 

Her latest children's book, which happened to be shortlisted for a Word Guild award in the Children's category - Hopeful Homer - offers hope and encouragement to never ever give up!

SURVIVING SELF-SABOTAGE - by Heidi McLaughlin

Curiosity can kill the cat or open the sabotage door. Strangely enough my curiosity on the golf course affirmed the sub-conscious power of self-sabotage. I’m not a great golfer but on a good day I can play a pretty decent game.  I have a dream to shoot a certain score and I know I can do it. So why hasn’t it happened?  A pattern has unfolded that forces me to look at how I actually sabotage myself from reaching my goal.  When I am at hole 15 or 16 and know that I am close to a good score, I add the numbers to see how close I am to my dream objective. I start to get it excited. Very soon the game changes and the next three holes are a disastrous Ripley’s Believe It Or Not. Target missed. Then the walk of shame.  Why do I defeat myself? Again and again!

My husband has seen my dismay and voiced my frustration: “Honey why do you check your score before the game is over. You always end up sabotaging your dream?”  I agree with him and am beginning to understand the verse in Bible that says: “The thief approaches with malicious intent, looking to steal, slaughter, and destroy” (John 10:10 VOICE). Ok I know I am stretching the analogy of a golf game but I am becoming aware of this concept in many areas of life.  Perhaps a goal of writing a book, speaking to a large audience, pursuing a radio program, raising funds for a worthwhile project or opening a Day Care Centre. There is an enemy (Satan) playing dirty to steal our dreams and joy through making us believe voices of defeat and accusations that are not true:

a.         You don’t deserve this.

b.         You’re not smart or capable enough.

c.          You will never amount to anything.

d.         Why would anyone want to hear what you say or write?

e.         Who do think you are anyways?

Those negative thoughts have burned into our sub-conscious to sabotage our glorious and fulfilling future. They sneak into our soul through the trap door of fear, unworthiness and shame.  It’s important that we recognize them because they are not from God.  In Philippians 4:13 NLT it says: “For I can do everything through Christ, who gives me strength.”  You can do ANYTHING my friend.  The number one regret that people have is: I wish I had been more true to myself.

If you are standing on the brink of a big idea for a book or you want to take up painting, decorating, scuba diving or run a marathon. Dismiss the voices in your head and tell them:  “Oh, it’s you again.” Then step up to the plate and embrace the life that God has given you to live with passion and joy. In the second part of the John 10:10 Jesus says this: “I came to give life with joy and abundance.”

If you have children you know how much you want them to enjoy the gifts you give them. Our God is a good Father who has lavished us with gifts and abilities for our pleasure and to make a difference in this world. Let’s not allow fear or shame to defeat us, instead let’s look sabotage right in the eye and say: “Oh it’s you again” and move into your glorious future.

 Heidi McLaughlin lives in the beautiful vineyards of the Okanagan Valley in Kelowna, British Columbia. She is married to Pastor Jack and they have a wonderful, eclectic blended family of 5 children and 9 grandchildren. When Heidi is not working, she loves to curl up with a great book, or golf and laugh with her husband and special friends. You can reach her at: www.heartconnection.ca.

Her new book RESTLESS FOR FOR: Fulfillment in Unexpected Places will be launched July 4, 2016.