The Overwhelming Theme

“The overwhelming theme in the Old Testament is not that God is a god of wrath, but that God is a god of love, and that we keep making horrible choices. I think sometimes we think that love is the equivalent of acceptance of action. God always loves us without condition. He does not acceptContinue reading “The Overwhelming Theme”

Forecasting

By: Gabriela Yareliz Last night at church, Erwin McManus reminded us of something powerful— our hope and anticipation for the future is tied to whether we believe God is good. Erwin walked us through Ezra, where the people of Israel laid the foundation for the new temple (the temple known as the inferior temple. Ironically,Continue reading “Forecasting”

Only the Brave

By: Gabriela Yareliz I loved this message from Erwin McManus. It was a powerful reminder of the call to courage, and the role our measure of courage plays in laying hold of the life God can help us achieve. The interesting thing is courage is a decision. It is up to us. The message isContinue reading “Only the Brave”

The Four Questions

By: Gabriela Yareliz This morning, I was reflecting on Byron Katie’s four questions. These are the questions she uses to coach people through issues and places where they get stuck. The questions are: Working through these has been so interesting. They make the day brighter and make us feel freer.

Never Satisfied

“I will never be satisfied. Life is one constant search for betterment for me.” Jayne Mansfield By: Gabriela Yareliz I want to know that I have peace about some things. I have let go of others. I want to have a settled spirit. You know, the kind you can’t f*** with, as we say inContinue reading “Never Satisfied”

A Loyal Friend

By: Gabriela Yareliz “Anger is a map,” Julia Cameron writes. She says that anger deserves to be listened to, not stuffed away or suppressed as we tend to do. Why? Because it shows us, in the most loyal way, where we have been betrayed and where we have betrayed ourselves. Anger is a loyal friend.Continue reading “A Loyal Friend”

Dreamer DNA

“Keepers of private notebooks are a different breed altogether, lonely and resistant rearrangers of things, anxious malcontents, children afflicted apparently at birth with some presentiment of loss.” Joan Didion, Slouching Towards Bethlehem By: Gabriela Yareliz I saw this Didion quote, and I know there is truth to it. As a kid, I would write 15Continue reading “Dreamer DNA”

Words for the Silence

By: Gabriela Yareliz Two out of my three trains are on time. I am overcoming my shock. As I do that, I continue to reflect on a passage in scripture that deeply moved me this week. You know, sometimes, you are in a weird season. You feel surrounded by an environment you could do without.Continue reading “Words for the Silence”

Different

“If you want something different, you are going to have to do something different.”Jack Canfield By: Gabriela Yareliz This may be one of the hardest lessons life offers us. Hard because ‘different’ requires courage. It requires risk. It often requires uncertainty and the unknown. It requires sitting down and doing the hard work of tryingContinue reading “Different”

Wisteria

By: Gabriela Yareliz My husband has a green thumb. He is currently planting seeds into trays. I just pop up by the table to sniff the soil (I like the smell of soil), and then, disappear. He plants. I read about plants. I recently read about Wisteria. Apparently, the meaner you are to Wisteria, theContinue reading “Wisteria”