A Steady Walk

The other day, I got reacquainted with a quote I’d stumbled onto online that deeply resonated with me as much as the first time I’d read it. “ I’m the one who loves to write, but hates to speak. I’m the one who loves silence, but dies without music.” (Connie Cernik, TheMindsJournal)   It got me thinking… I’m also the one who loves people, but is unsocial. The one who has a huge heart for evangelism, but dislikes forwardness. What a conundrum!   Or is it? Of all the quotes I most favor, they almost all have to do with being quiet and/or reflecting God’s love in gentler ways. Such as St. Francis of Assisi, “Preach the gospel at all times and when necessary use words.” And although this isn’t necessarily spiritual, I can relate to this quote most attributed to Jean-Pierre de Florian, “To live happily live hidden.”   I also live by a scripture I’ve yet to hear a sermon on, that I have framed beside my front door. A reminder every time I go out into the world: “Make it your a...

There’s an SNL skit that’s always made me laugh: “Debbie Downer”. She brings down the mood at every function by her fatalist negativity. What makes it so funny, aside from the effective role played by Rachel Dratch, are the elements of truth—because we all experience moments in life, even what should be celebratory ones, with a “Debbie Downer”.   Here’s an illustration I'll use right now from my personal sphere of writing at my home desk:   ~~~~~~~~~~ (I look out the upper landing window)   Me : The trees look so majestic and lovely today.   (Somebody looks over my shoulder)   Downer : Wind is going to take one of those down someday; it’ll smash the house and could kill somebody.   * wah-wah sound effect*   (A minute later, I half-stand, leaning over the top of my desk to watch a family of deer meander right below)   Me : This never gets old! Living in the woods. I enjoy watching the deer. They take this path ev...

Welcome to first timers, and welcome back to faithful readers. Either way, it’s with warmth that I extend this welcome: baruch haba/bruchah haba’ah— “blessed is the one who comes”. If you’ve read my blog posts before, you might wonder what happened to the old web page. Turns out I had to find a new home for my web hosting, as the platform was bought out without the promise of supporting the original functions or updates. After 12 years with the same first-rate company, it was a painful switch. As a result, I have a newly designed website, though, which I’m pleased with; however, my old “blogette” posts are no longer active. I can move that content, but the time to do so is costly, and after prayer and consideration, I feel like I need to let it go. Although I’ve blogged a lot over a variety of places online and have done a healthy share of guest-blogging with different organizations, I’d always called my personal blog Pressing Through. Sometimes I’ve posted that headline, and someti...