Last time we talked about burning ships and building bridges. We touched on my choice to not be in church leadership as a female. I want to tell you about a conversation that I had with an elder’s wife last week on the day that article came out.
Read MoreI have always preferred opposites. Noise to complete silence. Smiles instead of tears. Light instead of the dark
Read MoreI started this book review with Romans 12:2 because I believe that God allows us to choose what we intake and He also gives us discernment. I was asked to review “Everybody Fights, So why Not Get Better at It?” By Kim and Penn Holderness.
Read MoreWe often think of sanctuaries as sacred buildings adorned with stained glass, but sanctuaries are any place we can retreat for refuge and renewal. Any space that speaks to our souls and places us in a posture of reverence can be a sanctuary.
Read MoreThere is magic in a marsh sunset, when the water mirrors the sky above. I can watch the water, looking for ripples of movement to reveal the wildlife under the surface while admiring wispy clouds swirling overhead. And I can witness the water and sky as one, the water working to reflecting much bigger blue above.
Read MoreI want to tell you about something I’ve noticed on the journey of building bridges and burning ships (part 1 here). Labels. They are so fun. When you meet a person you start to categorize them - the color of their skin, their age, their gender, their sexuality, or maybe what they do for a living. We don’t intentionally place people in a box - nonetheless we do. One of the things I’ve noticed in the modern-day church is an unintentional “burning ships”.
Read More“Having children is like a walk in the park. Jurassic Park, to be precise.”
Before I had kids, this was a quote that I laughed at but didn’t really understand. Now, it’s something that I laugh at because it can feel so true. It doesn’t matter how many of your friends or family have kids before you and offer their advice and experiences to assist you on your own journey, there is truly nothing that can prepare you for what lies ahead. Much like the crew that John Hammond assembled in the first of this movie franchise - not a single one of them knew enough about dinosaurs despite all the books they’d read and bones they’d assessed to face them in real-time.
We had just moved from Chennai, India to Auckland, New Zealand. My husband started designing bridges here. Within a couple of weeks, the boys, 18 and 14, were busy with studies, and Ranjan worked long hours at the office. I realized I could not work as an architect in New Zealand with my Indian qualification. I took that and everything else to the Lord in prayer.
Read MoreI lean my head back, spread out my arms and legs and allow the water to softly suspend me on the surface. I’m not swimming, forcing forward motion, or treading water, barely keeping my head above water. I’m floating: free to rest, be still and simply be. I welcome the weightlessness and wonder why I don’t float more often. Floating, in the water and out in the world, both takes faith and renews my faith. And I’m beginning to believe faith is a float.
Read MoreMission statements may feel corporate and you might wonder what role they have in a Christian’s life, but here’s the thing: if you do not have a clear destination and purpose for your time here on earth, life will just pass you by. Today, let’s talk about what a mission statement is and why you need one.
Read More2020 was quite the year for all of us. The word “unprecedented” seemed to describe the entire twelve months in a nutshell. For some, it meant doing church on Facebook Live, for others it included getting married on Zoom. Some folks suffered great loss being laid off from their jobs, or endured the death of a loved one from Covid-19, or both. When we rang in 2021, there seemed to be a glimmer of hope that 2020 was over and that everything would change as soon as the clock struck midnight.
Read MoreI remember how cold it was that day: lower thirties, typical Chicago weather. Although it was November, snow had not yet kissed our city streets. “All you need to do is be cool. Just walk into that restaurant, smile and ask for an application. That’s it. Just ten minutes of bravery. The worst they’re going to say is no, and if they do, you can try Olive Garden next.”
Read MoreTrue confession - I am 100% a Type 2 on the Enneagram. For those who don’t know, that means I’m a helper. At the age of 29, I’m running a non-profit, I’ve helped start a different one, and lead several ministries. Right now, I’m finally learning the gift of boundaries. God had to take me on a harrowing journey for a season to learn that importance, however!
Read MoreOne of the things that I’ve done the most consistently during the past year is to go on walks. With gyms closed in the beginning of the pandemic, I first started walking around my neighborhood and have since moved on to walking in the beautiful greenways in my city.
Read MoreFor many people, this past year brought changes no one saw coming: job loss, unexpected moves, heartbreak, sickness, and fears for the future. Maybe you’ve felt like me: gratitude for peace, family, and safety, but uncertainty about what the future holds. Even more than that, I’ve been feeling uncertain how to step forward in faith to what God has for me.
Read MoreI have been through a few seasons in my life so far. God has shown me in each season how everything works in His timing and not my own. Some may recall parts of their life with bitterness or despair. Thankfully, I can reminisce on my own with fondness and gratefulness. God had His hand on my life through those times, and His faithfulness is truly evident looking back.
Read More2021. It’s a new year, filled with lots of hope and expectations for better days and more human interaction. At the end of 2020, everyone had big goals and hearts full of hope — hope in the new year, in the flip of a page of the calendar. And within just one week, our country faced an unspeakable trial, knocking down the hope in the better days that were supposed to refresh us in the new year. As Christians, we are called to put our hope in Christ, not in any year or even any person.
Read MoreRead on for an update on when we’re coming back with new content in 2021 and a round up of the top 10 most-read articles on TirzahMag.com in 2020.
Read More“Let’s get off social media for Lent this year,” she said. That was how it started. We were juniors in college when my roommate suggested we fast from using social media platforms for the forty days of Lent. We chose social media for a number of reasons: to refocus our attention on God, take a mental break, and witness what would happen to us without it.
Read MoreI love the recounting of Jesus calming the storm in the gospel of Luke. I read it again yesterday, as I read in my chronological Bible and caught up from the days I'd fallen behind. I thought I'd write it out for you.
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