Splendid Friends after a morning hike, Pagosa Springs.

The thoughts started percolating with his sharing his journey of the past month.

What should I be doing?
What could I be doing?
What dreams is God asking me to lay aside?

It was that third question that stood out. As Bill and I drove home from our retreat with our Splendid Friends, Bill asked, Did anything come to mind immediately when Del posed his ‘lay aside’ question? Yes! I didn’t even need to think.

“Indeed, I count everything as loss
because of the surpassing worth
of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord.”
Philippians 3:8

Last May I laid aside my desire to write a book. Last month I laid aside my desire to lead a Bible study. I haven’t second guessed either decision. Although I haven’t described those decisions with joy, there has been great peace. Other things are surfacing for me as well.

“But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace …”
Galatians 5:22

When I read Ros’ recent words about the joy she experienced in her decision to lay aside the London marathon, I knew I wanted to share them with you. I wonder, might God be asking you to lay aside something and experience new peace and joy in the process.

Ros Boydell

This Way to Life
Ros Boydell, October 1, 2022

Tomorrow tens of thousands of people will congregate in London to run a marathon, bedecked in lycra and anticipation. I will not be one of them.

Yesterday, in plans made to coincide with running the race, I found myself in the streets of our capital, observing the event preparation, walking along the finishing line by the palace. Even two days out there was excitement in the air.

I then boarded a train and headed north again, leaving marathon dreams behind.

Or did I?

(leave the dreams behind, I mean, I know I boarded the train )

For this whole endeavour has surprised me at every turn. Earlier today I reread the piece I’d written at the start of the training (click here to read), where I pondered the possibility of failing. What was there to fear by giving this my best shot? Of course at the time I imagined that the wonderful lessons I would learn would come in the form of smashing my personal-best. I rehearsed in my mind what I what do as I crossed the finish line (jump up with arms punching the air). These last months I ran and ran and ran, further and faster than I’ve ever run before.

And then six weeks ago, the virus came to visit our house.

Having only a mild case, I assumed that I would be back to running as normal within the next few weeks. I listened to my body, rested well, and then gradually returned to the heavy quota of miles that my plan had prescribed. In myself I felt well, and had no issues with breathlessness when going about my daily life. When running, though, my breathing was laboured even at very slow paces, and my heart rate elevated almost constantly.

I continued in this way for several weeks, determined to keep my legs strong for when my chest had recovered. This was hard work. I felt sad at the thought of not running as fast as I’d been training for, but at no point did I consider withdrawing my place.

That was until one evening two weeks ago when I returned from an evening run. I’d done the miles, but it had felt heavy, my body wasn’t happy.

As I sat in the kitchen that evening, drinking my post-run hot chocolate, there was bustle around me. Girls were milling in and out, homework was being completed, washing hung up. It wasn’t a time for spacious reflection, but in the midst of this hubbub a thought occurred to me. Less of a thought really, more a picture in the periphery of my mind’s eye. A picture of a signpost. I couldn’t make out the actual words, but somehow knew what they said –

This Way to Life

I couldn’t see more than a footstep down the path, but I knew where it was pointing. It was pointing towards the path of life of Psalm 16. The path of freedom and wholeness and joy. In that instant I knew I needed to pull out of the race..

As I write about it now it’s difficult to quite find the words to describe those moments. There was an uncommon settledness. A sense of purpose and invitation. A clarity where there been restlessness.

I was filled with an enormous sense of relief..

The human heart has the capacity to experience a range of emotions at the same time, and in these weeks since withdrawing there have been moments of disappointment, disorientation and listlessness as I’ve adjusted to not shaping my life around this pursuit. But the predominant emotion has been joy.
Joy at the memory of many summer months running along cycle paths and pavements, reclaiming fitness as my own. Joy at my own strength and vitality. I am, indeed, alive. How can this experience be classed as a failure when I have already gained so much?

But more than the joy of the running, I’ve felt thankful to the signpost-God who intervenes into our daily life, illuminating the way to walk. I didn’t choose the path I’ve ended up walking along, but can I trust that it is good?

If you remember, my mantra for this race was Don’t hold back.
And so I walk confidently down this next path, not holding back. I wonder where it’ll lead me next.

You make known to me the path of life;
you will fill me with joy in your presence,
with eternal pleasures at your right hand.
Psalm 16:11

Me again:

Psalm 16:11 has been the verse on the header of Echoes of Grace since its inception twelve years ago. God continues to show me what the path looks like. Ros’ words offered timely encouragement.

What about you? Is your path taking an unexpected turn? Please share your story in the comments and I’ll pray for you.

Hobblebush, Linda Bonorden

It’s a new season. Autumn is one week old. (It’s one of my three favorite seasons.) There is new beauty. I love watching the trees, the foliage change into their new colors.

It is true with Gospel Friendships as well. Although each friendship is lived out uniquely, there is a predictable simplicity and beauty to each one. And it changes with the seasons.

The scriptures don’t change. The principles don’t change. But the application of the principles change with each friendship and in each new season.

Three scriptures and six principles guide me.

Ephesians 5:2 – “And walk in love,” That leads me to Q & A.

I ask a lot of questions. I practice curiosity. I don’t need answers; God has the answers. I just need to allow my questions to lead my gospel friends to God’s answers.

“A” stands for affirmation. Affirmation is pointing out God’s work in their lives. Affirmations are not compliments. Compliments highlight what one does. Affirmations point out who God created us to be.  One of my most common affirmations is, You’re in a good place. The good place is not defined as problem free; it is defined by their desire to grow spiritually.***

Ephesians 5:8 – “Walk as children of light.”

“So being affectionately desirous of you,
we were ready to share with you not only the gospel of God
but also our own selves,
because you had become very dear to us.”
I Thessalonians 2:8

Leaders go first. I need to be willing to be vulnerable and walk in the light with my story. When I offer my vulnerability; it opens a door to their hearts. Trust happens. They become secure in vulnerability. We are both walking in the light.

“What. You too? I thought I was the only one.” C.S. Lewis.

And as they walk in the light with me, I’ve learned to not be shocked. Everyone has issues. One friend sat down with her coffee, looked at me and said, when I tell you this, you’re not going to like me. I still like her. She is one of my gospel friends.

Ephesians 2:15 – “Look carefully then how you walk, not as unwise but as wise,”

Linda Klingman

For me, a major part of walking in wisdom is knowing my capacity. It is changing. One of my friends mentioned that for her it is knowing if she started something, could she sustain it. Sustainability helps define capacity. Thank you, Linda!

God gives us passions. They don’t change; but the application changes. Another friend, gifted in hospitality, told me recently, “I still love to use my home (her gift of hospitality has not changed), but I often invite my friends in for tea in the afternoon instead of for dinner.” Recently I benefited from her hospitality. We shared a delightful afternoon.

A new baby changes capacity. Bill and I gave up inviting friends for dinner for a year when our second son was born.

God designed us to walk in the beauty of gospel friendships: to walk in love; to walk in the light; to walk with wisdom. The simplicity of focusing on these three scriptures and six principles has offered a plan that gives courage and blesses gospel friendships.

*** I have an affirmation worksheet that I often use with my gospel friends. I’d love to share it with you as well. Let me know if you’re interested. sue.tell@navigators.org.

Copyright: Sue Tell, September 2022

More specifically, Gospel Friendship is a sheltering tree.

Marion is still mentoring me from Heaven.

My husband was in the process of recovering from very severe burnout and depression. It was the first Sunday of Advent (1999) and we were back in church for the first time in weeks. I LOVED it! I was so glad to be with friends and celebrating the beginning of the Christmas season. The music was glorious; the message encouraging. Bill, however, couldn’t wait for the service to end. The music was too loud. The morning’s message didn’t apply. The kind greetings of our friends as the service ended suffocated him.

We left knowing he wasn’t ready yet to be with 1500 of our friends … even if only for a few hours on a Sunday morning.

Now I was depressed.

I wanted to, no, I needed to support my husband. And I wanted to be back with our church family. The tug on my emotions was real and hard. I needed a gospel friend.

It was Marion’s gospel friendship, understanding, and gentle words a few days later that delivered peace to my heart. Sue, you and Bill don’t need to be here physically on Sundays. You are loved and we understand. This was many years before our service was live-streamed.

I’m such a people-pleaser! My depression that long-ago Sunday stemmed from both the sadness of our reality and from feeling the NEED to be in church. Isn’t that what people expect from good church members? Marion put my heart at ease and pointed me to the path of trust.

The Holy Spirit brought Marion’s wisdom back to my mind as once again this fall I was struggling with a decision revolving around church. This time it was not my presence that was tripping me up, it was my participation, my ministry within the walls of our church.

My heart was pulling me one way; my capacity another way. Again the tug on my emotions was real. I needed my gospel friends.

The reality is I have ministry in our church and within our mission organization. But I’m not a Sunday School teacher. My responsibility is not serving at the coffee bar. I’m not leading a ladies Bible study.  You know, those things that easily offer an identity, significance. Those outside of my influence may not know that I connect with several gospel friends. I minister to them. They minister to me. Sometimes we meet at a local coffee shop; sometimes via Zoom. Both work.

In these, my silver-haired years, God is privileging me with these gospel friendships. We help each other live out the gospel of grace. We listen to each other’s stories; we ask questions; we affirm; we offer wisdom to each other. These ladies are cross-generational friends, or gospel friends. We prod each other on. I learn so much from my gospel friends.

I’m living out who God created me to be in this season. It’s a hidden ministry; it’s experiencing gospel friendship. It is good.

A few years before Marion promoted to Heaven, we were talking about Bible study. At the time she was living in a senior complex. Marion and I originally met in the context of church Bible study. She shared, Sue, several are asking me to return to church for Bible study. But God has me living here. And I want to serve in the midst of where I am. The wisdom of a gospel friend.

“but let your adorning be the hidden person of the heart
with the imperishable beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit,
which in God’s sight is very precious.”
I Peter 3:4

For another chapter in my journey on this topic, come back next Thursday, September 29. I’ll be sharing my practical plan for cross-generational, gospel friendships.

It seems God reminds me of this topic often. Check out these posts:
https://suetell.com/2020/09/       The Gift of Friendship
https://suetell.com/older-woman-need-older-woman/       Older Women Still Need Older Women

Copyright:  Sue Tell, Sept 2022

I want to do it all.
I want to support ___________. (Fill in the blank with your desire.)
I want them to see the Sue who’s involved.
I want to be Superwoman!
And that’s a problem!

A few weeks ago Bill and I attended our Senior (as in age) Navigator Conference. General Jerry White, one of our former International Navigator directors was one of our speakers. His wisdom is always what I need to hear.

He spoke practically on how to not lose “Our Energy and Our Passion” in these silver-haired years.

As he spoke on passion, he said, Keep your passion for God alive; not activities. For me that led to two immediate applications. 1) Protect my Thursdays, the day I set aside for extended time with God. That led to sub-applications. And, 2) Keep reminding myself of the truths God has been whispering to me.

” … the god of all grace who has called you to his eternal glory in Christ, will himself
restore,
confirm,
strengthen,
and establish you.
... this is the true grace of God.
Stand firm in it.”
I Peter 5:10 & 12 (bolding mine)

Restore – bring me back.
Confirm – remind me again.
Strengthen – reinforce.
Establish – show beyond doubt.

When I want to be Superwoman, when I want to do it all, I need God’s whispers. I need to hear his truth again! I need to remember my call and be restored, confirmed, strengthened, and established in who God created me to be.

“But to all who received him,
who believed in his name,
he gave power to become
children of God;”
John 1:12, RSV

This is the first scripture I memorized as a new believer over 50 years ago (when I still had auburn hair). I needed its  truth again. I am a child. A child is dependent. A child is weak. A child needs God’s power.

“My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.”
II Corinthians 12:9

A prayer I often pray for myself asks God for these things.

God, please grow my knowing.
Help me to listen for your whispers.
Help me to recognize your love.
Help me to lean into your truth.
Help me to live with expectancy.
The expectancy of resurrection power.
The expectancy of knowing you. Amen.

When I want to be Superwoman, I’m listening to myself. I need to review. I need to remember. I need to recognize God’s opportunity to trust truth. I need to say, ah-ha – this is an answer to my prayers.

Brennan Manning says, “Define yourself radically as one beloved by God. this is the true self. Every other identity is an illusion.”

I was never meant to be Superwoman.

” … this is the true grace of God.
Stand firm in it.”
I Peter 5:12

Do you identify? Do you sometimes want to be Superwoman? This summer my friend created a new bookmark for me with a similar prayer on the front. Would you like one? Email me, sue@suetell.com and I’ll put one in the mail to you.

Copyright, Sue Tell, September 2022

Summer has only a few short weeks left in 2022.
School has started.
Some of the wildflowers are looking like fall.
The morning temperatures are cooler. I don a sweatshirt before going to our deck with my coffee, Bible, and journal.

And Echoes of Grace wants to rest in these changes for two more weeks.

After four wonderful days with many long-time friends at a Navigator conference, this morning even my journal was too heavy to pick up. I added some fall color to our deck flowers, and then …

I sat.
I listened to the breeze travel through the Aspens.
I listened to the birds chattering.
I was captured by my simple view.
I drank coffee, its aroma mingling with fall smells.
I enjoyed.
It was good!

Quiet + Beauty + Solitude = the need of the hour.

And I made a decision – Echoes of Grace needed to extend its summer vacation until September 15. It will return in two weeks.

A familiar truth with a new application:

“Trust in the LORD with all your heart,
and do not lean on your own understanding.
In all your ways acknowledge him,
and he will make straight your paths.”
Proverbs 3:5 and 6

Till September 15, blessings to you!

Sue

Mark your calendar for September 1!  Echoes of Grace will return.

During August I’m going to be meditating on I John 4:16, “So we have come to know and believe the love God has for us.” I’m hoping you’ll join me in pondering the truth of this verse.

Until then,
sue

Thank you Joan McPheron

Some of you read my words about Alaska last fall on Echoes of Grace. I have revised and re-written them and pulled them together for this one week. And my friends at Markinc are publishing them for you. Every day this week, my Alaska adventure will unfold again. Yes, for the next 6 days, click here for each installment. (markinc.org, click resources, click daily treasure)

And now for the SURPRISE!!! Are you more of a listener than a reader? Each day you can read my words or you can listen to them!

And here’s where I need your help. Do you appreciate being able to listen to Echoes of Grace? Is that more helpful for you than reading it? Would you like that feature to continue? Please let me know your thoughts.

Comment on this post. Or send me a quick email at suetell.com. I look forward to hearing from you.

Next week Echoes of Grace will start its annual August vacation. See you all in September! And may you enjoy the presence of God in these waning days of summer.

Heidi Viars

Heidi is a new friend. We met through our writing group, Your Story Matters. Heidi is one of our leaders. I have benefited from her coaching more than once. As I got to know Heidi, I learned we have more in common than just writing. We’re both mothers of boys. Bill and I have two sons. Heidi and Scott have six sons! We both enjoy bird watching. And I love Heidi’s creative writing that always points me to God.

“I was headed to the grocery store when I saw Mr. Wrecker on the side of the busy highway turning the crank on his flatbed. Mr. FedEx had broken down and was watching Mr. Wrecker load the truck to be hauled off. I wasn’t too far from home and wondered if the breakdown was going to impact my stuff-delivery. This snafu was definitely going to affect several people today. Suddenly, the delivery truck on the side of the road, with all the things inside, meant something to me. I usually don’t waste thoughts on passing FedEx trucks (except to make out the arrow in the logo). This time however, I wondered about the important cargo he was hauling. Without a doubt some valuable packages were not going to make it to their destination today. Then, my mind drifted and I saw Tom Hanks talking to Wilson on a deserted island. Sorry.

I thought of my inability to adequately weigh a single moment, my incomprehension of the depth and meaning of what I see and hear. In my ignorance I don’t recognize creation and the way it speaks nor the people around me and the eternal image they carry. I am distracted, run and chase, barrel down highways to bring home things I think I need.

When I sat on a bench near the woods a few days ago, when I slowed down and tried to enjoy solace, I got a glimpse of what I was missing, this weight of the moment. For a few seconds, God allowed me to realize to what extent I fall short, how much I don’t see and hear.

While I sat there, I closed my eyes and tried to tune into the many different bird calls. At first, I could only make out two or three. An Indigo Bunting in a birch nearby was chirping. Two Goldfinches flitted by and called to each other. Above me, several Chimney Swifts soared and sang. The closer I listened, the more birds I could distinguish.

A Robin in the woods.
A gaggle of Turkeys far off.
Crows cackling in the distance.

Out of curiosity, I turned on my bird app to prove my bird savvy to myself. Surely, I could hear all the birds and identify them. I was blown away by my ignorance. The app showed twenty-two different birds – all within recoding range of my phone. Slowly, I could hear them too.

House Finch
Song Sparrow
Cardinal
Different Wrens
Several Woodpeckers
Blue Jay
Cowbird
Flycatcher

How could I not hear all these sounds before?

My eyes wandered to the field. Grasses, emerging daisies, different trees and shrubs. So much diversity of growth, plants I could not name even if I tried. Insects swarmed. Two Monarchs glided gently by. Ants scurried between my feet. Millions of tiny bugs in the prairie. I looked up into the sky. The early morning sun beams were stretching toward south, light from a star in our solar system, a solar system in our galaxy, a galaxy among billions.

My mind does not easily turn to the eternal, nor does it naturally try to reason with God. It’s overwhelming to do that. I am distracted with the simple, with the things I think I can control. I throw these eternity-filled moments and gifts aside, cast away the invitation to imagine the grandeur. I walk by the packages set out for me right by my door.

God incarnate. He Himself became man, cast away His Godness, His eternal, His majesty, stooped down to my inability to fathom it all.

“Focus on me. Let me teach you to listen and see, the unimaginable goodness of your Father and His eternal love for you – for your brothers and sisters.
Let me teach you the weight of a moment.”

A loving glance.
An intimate touch.
A kind word.
A chirp of a bird.
A busy ant.
A sunrise.
A moonlit night.“

“Lord, let me not cast away these heavy, eternity filled moments. Teach me anew the weight of your glory.”

“He has made everything beautiful in its time. Also, he has put eternity into man’s heart, yet so that he cannot find out what God has done from the beginning to the end.”
Ecclesiastes 3:11

Heidi originally published these words on her blog, Taking A Closer Look, in June 2022.

I ‘borrowed’ the title of this article from a sermon I heard many years ago. The pastor shared how Moses’ parents chose to ‘live normally’ and build a family while enslaved in Egypt under a death sentence on infant boys. With all the adjustments I’ve encountered during the pandemic, I feel I need a new injection of normality.

As believers who reside outside the Garden, we continuously live in a world foreign to the perfect Creation God intended for us. God has planted eternity in our souls, and we feel out of place in a world with an expiration date. Creation itself groans, longing for what God intended. (Romans 8:22). Enamored with the Creation, creatures define reality by what they can touch, taste, hear, see, and feel.

The abnormality of our times expresses itself in fear and anger. In the early days of the pandemic, my husband commented how erratically people were driving. It appeared the mere act of leaving the house to run a quick errand filled drivers with fear and anxiety. I marvel how a simple comment on the Nextdoor app can unleash a flurry of angry responses.

Watching cable news, I’m tempted to quote Pilate, “what is truth?” Pseudo-science and mind-numbing statistics mingle with political aspirations to pull me in one direction and another. Opinions become more valuable than data. Social media adds new levels of peer pressure, and paints pictures of airbrushed reality. Sadly, these skewed views tempt even believers to take sides.

How can I live normally, honoring the Lord, in such an “abnormal” world?

Embrace Truth

My soul cries out for the normality of truth, for a worldview that considers the reality beyond our five senses. I want to live as God intended, not influenced by the fear, anger, and false perspectives of our pandemic culture. But unlike Pilate, who failed to see Truth standing in front of him, I do have access to the Truth that defines normal for the believer.

The psalmist writes, “If your law had not been my delight, I would have perished in my affliction. I will never forget your precepts, for by them you have given me life” (Ps. 119:92, 93). During an extended period of unemployment, these verses described my lifeline. God’s Word, His truth, gave me perspective when circumstances tempted me to despair.

Jesus Christ is the embodiment of truth. “And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth” (John 1:14). When my world seems off track or tempts me to think otherwise, Christ in His Word shines the light of truth on my misconceptions.

Cultivate Trust

The prophet Jeremiah knew life in an abnormal world. While Judah continued to ignore his warnings, even openly persecuting him for speaking the truth, Jeremiah continued to obey the Lord. He offers his wonderful description of the man who can live outside the constraints of culture, trusting in the Lord, during difficult times. “Blessed is the man who trusts in the LORD, whose trust is the LORD. He is like a tree planted by water, that sends out its roots by the stream, and does not fear when heat comes, for its leaves remain green, and is not anxious in the year of drought, for it does not cease to bear fruit.” (Jer. 17:7-8)

More than knowing the Word intellectually, I need to trust in the saving work of Christ and the hope I have in Him. Of His many promises, Jesus assures me I can find rest from the weariness and heaviness of living in this world by coming to Him; He promises rest for my soul (Matthew 11:28, 29). I realize the hope of this promise as I seek to obey Him day by day.

An Anchor for the Soul

As Christ followers, we will never feel normal in this world. Sin’s influence keeps the sands shifting beneath our feet. Pandemics, politics, pseudo-science all threaten our security. But as I keep my eyes on the One who secured my salvation and holds my future, I can live steadied by His truth. I can trust in His transforming power to exhibit His character to a fallen world, and I can extend His love to those around me. “Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever.”

Trusting in Him, I can find the ‘normal’ in my abnormal world.

Thank you Sandy!