Let’s Help Each Other Fly
(in)courage - find yourself among friends
by Anna E. Rendell
5h ago
Earlier this winter, my daughter participated in a cheerleading clinic. She and other elementary school kids learned two routines and were invited to perform at halftime during the high school basketball game. She and I practiced the small group routine over and over, perfecting the cheer and hand claps and jumps. What I couldn’t help her with was the large group routine. She had a small stunt she was involved in, and while I can holler and clap with the best of them, my cheerleading “skills” end there. I would just have to wait and see her during the game. She ran out onto the basketball cour ..read more
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When You’d Rather Hide, Reach Out Instead
(in)courage - find yourself among friends
by Mary Carver
1d ago
Last Thursday was a really bad day. I’m talking about a horrible, terrible, miserable, no good, very bad day. After work, I drove home to take one of my children to an appointment . . . but we never made it to that appointment. Some truly bad choices were made before we even got into the car, and we couldn’t go. It was traumatic for all involved, and missing the appointment was merely the icing on a garbage cake. By the time that crisis was resolved, I was physically and emotionally spent. I wanted to crawl into my bed and ignore the whole world. The horrible, terrible, miserable, no good, ver ..read more
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You Are in the Potter’s Good Hands
(in)courage - find yourself among friends
by Dorina Lazo Gilmore-Young
2d ago
A few months ago, I invited my friend to join me for a pottery class at a new local studio for her birthday present. We both love to try new things and were intrigued by the experience of using a potter’s wheel to create something out of clay. When we arrived at the class, the teacher gave us step-by-step instructions. We each sat down behind a wheel while she passed out a ball of clay to each student. Our first task was to slam the clay down in the center of the wheel to get it to stick. Then we were to wet a small sponge and soak the clay. Our teacher encouraged us to gently nudge the pedal ..read more
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6 Simple Prayers for When You’re Barely Hanging On
(in)courage - find yourself among friends
by Becky Keife
3d ago
I often feel like I’m living in the land of barely. Barely enough sleep. Barely enough patience. Barely keeping enough spoons and socks clean. (Seriously, what happens to all the spoons?!)  Barely fixing dinner. Barely getting dressed. Barely keeping my anxiety in check. My default is to shame myself for all the barely. To “should” myself into doing better, trying harder. Do you have a soundtrack of shoulds? I should be on top of things. I should manage my time better. I should be over this. I should be okay by now. I should be more grateful, more together, more spiritual. I should be les ..read more
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Is That the Messiah? Is It Time?
(in)courage - find yourself among friends
by (in)courage
4d ago
The next day, when the large crowd that had come to the festival heard that Jesus was coming to Jerusalem, they took palm branches and went out to meet him. They kept shouting: “Hosanna!Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord—the King of Israel!”John 12:12-13 CSB We lined up in the church lobby — about 100 preschool and elementary school children and the volunteers tasked with keeping them quiet for those few minutes. I pressed my ear to the door, listening for our signal. Ok, he’s still doing announcements, I thought, wondering how long our pastor was going to talk about Eas ..read more
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When It Feels Like You’re Wilting but You’re Wanting to Flourish
(in)courage - find yourself among friends
by (in)courage
5d ago
The righteous thrive like a palm tree and grow like a cedar tree in Lebanon. Planted in the house of the Lord, they thrive in the courts of our God. They will still bear fruit in old age, healthy and green, to declare, “The Lord is just; he is my rock, and there is no unrighteousness in him.” Psalm 92:12-15 CSB These past few weeks I haven’t been praying. I’ve wanted to, but still, I haven’t. I’m just so busy right now, I told myself. I’ll talk to Jesus soon. God will understand. I wasn’t reading my Bible either. I saw it, sitting there on my nightstan ..read more
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The Sit-Down Season
(in)courage - find yourself among friends
by Jami Nato
6d ago
I remember the thrill of just finding out I was pregnant. I went over to my parents’ house and my mother caught me smiling at nothing, “What is that smile about?” she inquired. I had no chill and exclaimed, “I guess I’m pregnant!” We laughed because I had only been married for one whole month. But the excitement soon faded as I was so nauseous I couldn’t even go to work. I had to quit, as I was practically bedridden, emerging only when I needed gas station powdered donuts or a bean burrito at 10 a.m. from the local Mexican restaurant that quickly got to know my husband’s desperate voice. Then ..read more
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His Mercies Are New Every Minute
(in)courage - find yourself among friends
by (in)courage
1w ago
I’m in my car and turning onto the interstate that takes me over the lake. I like the way the water sparkles — like a mirror, always reflecting the light of the good sun. As the water sparkles, I think about something that younger me never realized. Right here in my car, with nothing mystical or magnificent happening, I feel God and His presence. I think of the passage of Scripture that carried me through my weary, teenage years: the steadfast love of God never stops, and His mercies are new every morning. Long gone are my adolescent years when I’d cry myself to sleep, unsure of God’s mercy an ..read more
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For When You’re Tired of Being the Backup Friend
(in)courage - find yourself among friends
by Mary Carver
1w ago
“Mom, I feel like I’m the backup friend.” I knew exactly what she meant as soon as she said it, but I asked her to clarify anyway. And sure enough, my sweet middle schooler was afraid that she was nobody’s first choice, that all her friends liked someone else better than her. She felt like they only saw her as a backup to their true preference, their first choice. Thankfully, this discussion — like so many others — took place in the car, while I sat directly in front of my daughter on our way to dance class. If I tilted my head just right, I could catch her eye in the rearview mirror, but for ..read more
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The Ministry of Wonder
(in)courage - find yourself among friends
by Tasha Jun
1w ago
This week, I started reading, The Hidden Life of Trees, by Peter Wohlleben, and it’s safe to say that my mind is blown, my imagination re-ignited, and my hope in God’s good work in the world has been buoyed. In his book, Wohlleben writes that trees not only communicate, they create community. Just yesterday evening, I stood up from my reading spot on the living room couch to announce to whomever in my family would listen: Trees scream when they are thirsty! My family is used to these kinds of enthusiastic whoa-filled announcements from me. This week it’s trees, but over the last few years, it ..read more
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