• Sometimes people knock us around, don't they? As I daily rub up against friends and strangers, family and loved ones, it certainly seems that way. When that happens, my prayer is they would see Jesus at home when they come by. . . . Psalm 93:5 says, "Your statutes stand firm; holiness adorns your house for endless days." David is speaking about God's presence in the world, the majesty of His creation. But He also lives in me as I make room for Him, which is what becoming holy really is, I think. . . . When God is at home in us his light shines through our windows. That's what I want to share when people come knocking. . . . #Jesusisinthehouse #dwell #abide #Scripture #evangelism
  • I just found a $1 bill in a pair of jeans I bought from Goodwill. Another reason to love Saturdays. . . . What surprised you today? #recycling #KonMariMethod #surprisedbyjoy @MarieKondo #Weekendsforthewin
  • This is a variation on a theme for me. That still, small Holy Spirit voice says, "Live each day, listen each day, do the next right thing." . . It seems so trite to say but I want to climb a mountain or cross a river in one fell swoop instead of taking one day at a time. . . . . Then God reminds me that each step along the way, each pull on the oars is needed. I can see Him and hear Him better when I go slow. . . . Let's remind each other shall we? #spiritualpractices #friendswithpens #onedayatatime #tritebuttrue #Godspeaks #holyspirit
  • "It is particularly nice to have Valentine's Day fall in the depths of winter, for it suggests that spring is really just around the corner." . . . "The seed catalogues are a further promise of warm days to come. I class them as fiction and love to read them. Oh, the beautiful roses and tall spikes of delphinium and the flowering bushes---not to mention the carrots as big as telephone poles and the peas that practically shell themselves. . . . We get some pretty fine vegetables and some nice flowers, but they definitely do not resemble the champion parade in the catalogues." -Gladys Taber, Stillmeadow Seasons @christiepurifoy @amberchaines @jodilenz @_fernwood_ . . #hopespringseternal #seedcatalogues #gardening #flowersofInstagram
  • Sometimes the most remarkable miracles are right underneath our noses. . . I'm just about to send out my February newsletter, "Random Acts of Writing, Miraculous to Mundane, and would love to tell you more about what I've learned lately by looking and listening. Everything from the wisdom of @mariekondo, Mary Poppins, and the dynamic @christiepurifoy & @lisajobaker at #outoftheordinarypodcast. . . . If you're not already signed up for Random Acts of Writing, there's still time. The link is in my profile. #friendswithpens #beautymatters #heartandsoul #Christianauthors
  • Last night I was standing in my kitchen (twirling is more like it) looking for a place to begin tackling the mess and chaos. My mind was swimming about what I thought I "should" be doing, you know, to make Jesus happy. I have a funny inner voice that often gets me with the 'shoulds', as if God is keeping track of how I use my time, clipboard in hand and all. . . . . Several tasks/needs/wants were calling: a book I wanted desperately to read (who am I kidding? Many books.) some poetry to attend to and gasp! bills to pay. All I really wanted to do was sit and watch another installment of Tidying Up with Marie Kondo. Then I heard a still small voice say, "just do the next right thing." The next right thing was obviously to deal with the clutter, so I began clearing and cleaning up my kitchen. . . . Sometimes (most times) I want to get to The Next Big Thing and dive right into God's plans for me. Skip right past the daily and mundane and get to work that actually matters. As if the dishes don't matter. I've some ideas percolating right now about what to pour my creative energies into next and I'd rather get right to it. You know, change instantly and see some of my ideas come to fruition without putting in the time it takes to make adjustments and do the work. Sort of like Mary Poppins; I'd snap my fingers and find 'voila!' the job is done. . . . Alas, we cannot nor should we expect to, change in an instant. Nor can we get to wherever it is God wants us to be personally, creatively, spiritually without walking all the steps first. Whether it's the direction of our inward lives or our outward selves, the dreams we have percolating or the ideas scribbled on scraps of paper, they all take time. . . . And time is something God's got plenty of. All of it is His and all of it is sacred if we offer it to Him. The dishes and the dreams. #creatives #friendswithpens #MarieKondo (dragonfly photo taken at my friend Parris' house in Mandeville, La.)
  • My word for the year in 2018 was 'listen.' A friend pointed out that if you mix up the letters they also spell 'silent.' I spent most of my days last year being reminded about my penchant for spending too much time on noise. The 'noise' of social media, for one. ((Yes, I see the irony😊) I couldn't hear myself think and even more than that, I couldn't hear my Father God and His gentle whispers to attend to what He had called m e to do. . . . For 2019 I sensed the Holy Spirit saying 'quiet' was the focus going forward. 'Quiet' I suppose is nearly the same thing, but for me it is a particular way of reminding myself not to talk so much. I run at the mouth w a a a a y too often with all my good ideas and opinions and boy, does it get me in trouble. . . . Next month I'm attending the @refineretreat, a small gathering of creatives united by @kriscamealy`s vision and inspiration. As part of that gathering Kris has launched the inaugural edition of #TheRefineRetreat journal which I am honored to participate in. The theme of this issue? "Listen." There is no such thing as coincidence imho. . . . In the journal you can read my essay about healing from the loss of my mother, along with other contributions by remarkably gifted artists and poets. Profits from the sale of the journal go towards scholarships for next year's retreat (the cost is $1,000 so the $$ helps). I hope you'll give the Refine Journal a look see. The Amazon link is in my profile. #creatives #friendswithpens #beautymatters #wordfortheyear #silence #spiritualpractice #listening.
  • Although I unravel the world with words and writing I'm leaning into learning how to be more creative with color and paint... . . Inspiration has come from many different places. One of them is through @5ftinf (Philippa Stanton) and also @gardenercook Lorene Edwards. . . . I love the garden and I'm grateful for all the color that is out there which has been an inspiration to me and my painting endeavors. My creativity quotient has gone up because of it. . . I have a little mini post in my stories about it. Friends, what kind of art are you adding to your life today? #creatives #beautymatters #findingcolorinthegarden #consciouscreativity
  • Today is the first day of a new month on the last day of the week. We are always faced with the beginning of one thing on the heels of something else that has ended. . . . . God's redirecting my steps these days and calling me to a different kind of rhythm in my writing. I want to get to the finish line with a lovely piece of work to show for it but He keeps reminding me I need to walk (not run or sprint) all the steps along the way. Some of my steps these days look like 2-hour long phone calls with my insurance company (cue the groaning.) . . However, other sights and sounds along the way include conversations with friends and loved ones, in person or online or via text, that I cannot do without. Cue the grins. . What steps are you walking through today? Embrace each one--the groans and the grins. It's part of the journey.
  • Singing Bowl -Malcolm Guite (Canterbury Press, 2013)* Begin the song exactly where you are, Remain within the world of which you’re made. Call nothing common in the earth or air, Accept it all and let it be for good. Start with the very breath you breathe in now, This moment’s pulse, this rhythm in your blood And listen to it, ringing soft and low. Stay with the music, words will come in time. Slow down your breathing. Keep it deep and slow. Become an open singing-bowl, whose chime Is richness rising out of emptiness, And timelessness resounding into time. And when the heart is full of quietness Begin the song exactly where you are. . . ***** I've been collating and re-reading notes from a week-long workshop I attended with Malcolm Guite last August. While I copy and gather and jot notes, I can still hear the intonation in his voice with each poem, many of which he knew by heart. . . . Of course he knew the poems H E had written, but had a wealth of others at his command, reciting from memory lines and phrases that had taken root in his soul. Ephesians 2:10 says we are God's workmanship, his 'poiema' from the Greek. Poiema literally means 'a made thing.' We are God's creation, His 'made thing.' . . And He knows us by heart. What words do you know by heart? . #poetry #Christianpoets #malcolmguite #Glenworkshop #friendswithpens @gthorton . . *poem spacing did not translate correctly on IG. Sad face.

Jody Lee Collins

Inform~Encourage~Inspire

When Your Home is Not Home for the Holidays

It’s hard to plan for the perfect Christmas when you’re not where you want to be. But God knows how to love us best when we need Him the most. Take heart–He hears our heart’s cry in the middle of home, wherever we find ourselves. (excerpted from my book Living the Season Well-Reclaiming Christmas).

Moving a family of four across two states in the dead of winter is not for the faint of heart. When we sold our house in October, the closing date took longer than expected, leaving us moving smack in the middle of the Christmas season. The kids’ Christmas vacation from school was all the time we had—a two-week break was the perfect window. Well, maybe perfect isn’t exactly the right word. Looking back, it was rather a bold move, but I was determined to be near family again, and Seattle was calling.

We had spent 12 rich years in our central California neighborhood, woven deeply into the community. Our daughter and son, 12 and 15, had attended school with the same group of friends all their short lives. We were firmly ensconced in the life of our church as well as a babysitting co-op whose members had become like family. School, church and community were tightly woven into our lives.

During the weeks of preparation for our move, I frantically pondered how we were going to keep Christmas as we were uprooted and on the road during the holidays. My practical husband was in a very focused Task Mode. However, plucking my children (and myself) away from our life-giving support system had me focused on our emotional needs. My son Aaron and I share a similar temperament—both of us people persons, super adaptable and outgoing. He would be fine. Our daughter, however, was at that awkward, in-between stage of adolescence. Leah had two bosom friends she’d known almost from birth, and they meant the world to her. Moving her in the middle of sixth grade didn’t help; I needed a way to ease her (well, all of us) through the coming transition, so I hatched a plan.

 CRAZY-MAKING LONG DISTANCE CHRISTMAS PLANS

My husband and I began communicating with my brother and sister-in-law, the family to whom we would finally be close, and commissioned them with finding us a home to rent before we committed to purchasing a new one. Securing a temporary place to live was the biggest piece of the puzzle, but filling that home with Christmas holiday presence was going to be the next hurdle. Many phone calls and not a few letters were exchanged in the weeks before we left, and we were miraculously able to find a temporary home.

Then I asked my brother for one more favor: Could they manage to have a Christmas tree up when we arrived? And maybe some lights? I think I sent them $20. When we finally left our home in Central California and headed towards the Pacific Northwest, the anxious feeling in my stomach grew with every mile. How was our family going to adapt in this season? What had we done? And what about Christmas?

Our trip lasted well into the second evening of travel when we arrived at my brother’s house in frigid pouring rain. We stumbled into bed and woke the next morning with excitement and uncertainty about our new home. I secretly wondered whether Alex and Pam had been able to pull off the Christmas tree and lights surprise. “After all,” I thought, “they’ve had six weeks to prepare.”

A group of volunteers from my brother’s church showed up after breakfast to lead the way to our new home. We drove across town and up a winding hilly street through a middle-class neighborhood, stopping in front of a house painted a rather noncommittal color of mustard, something between yellow and gold. The rain continued to pour as we trundled out of the rented truck’s cab.

Pam ran ahead to the front steps. “Wait, wait!” she hollered. “I need to run in and get things ready.” I smiled a secret smile—maybe they’d been able to pull off this Christmas surprise after all.

She reappeared in the doorway and beckoned us. “Close your eyes!” We were led up three front steps, through the door and into the living room. I smelled cinnamon and heard Christmas carols in the background.

“Open your eyes!” There in front of us was a simply adorned Christmas tree with red paper bows and strings of popcorn. There were indeed little twinkle lights sparkling on the tree, a fragrant pot of cinnamon potpourri simmering in the kitchen and Christmas songs playing on a small tape player. I burst into tears and stood there speechless.

“How did you …?” I stammered. My husband and children stood dumbfounded.

There was a huddle of arms and hugs while more tears flowed.

“Merry Christmas,” my brother breathed gently. “Welcome home.”

That was twenty-five years ago. I still have the red bows.

JESUS IS COMING—MAKE ROOM       

Waiting to celebrate the birth of Christ can be like that move—a slow preparing of our hearts, our minds and our homes, like the planning I undertook with my brother and sister-in-law weeks before our Christmas in a foreign land. Besides the planning and waiting, I had to give up many expectations of what Christmas would be like that year.

How do you celebrate the holiday when your living room is crowded with moving boxes? But the good news? Surrendering my ideas of perfection left space for God to surprise us beyond what we could imagine. I was forced to adjust to a new season as I looked at all the extra room and vacant corners in our new rental.

The empty walls and barely furnished rooms greatly improved my mental state, making it easier to “see.” Although I felt untethered and impatient, desperate to begin nesting in our new home, the emptiness created room for waiting.

Life is funny like that. Whether it’s clearing our calendars for an hour or cleaning out an overstuffed closet, getting rid of our “too much” leaves space for relishing and enjoying what’s to come. Or allows us to see what’s already there.

*********

Advent begins on December 2nd this year. If this Christmas season observance is new to you, here’s a free graphic that will help in your celebrations. 

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