The Unwithered Leaf

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Why Unwithered Leaf?

But his delight in is the law of the LORD, and on His law he meditates day and night. He is like a tree planted by streams of water that yields its fruit in its season, and its leaf does not wither. In all that he does, he prospers.
Psalm 1:2-3

As I sat down on this 1st day of 2020, I pondered where to start reading in my Bible. You see, the last month or so was aimless, reading here and there, or wherever I needed to meet my needs. I tried doing an Advent devotional, but I found myself so many days behind, unfocused on the true reason for Christmas, and defeated by my inability to just be with Jesus.

As I sat, I thought about Psalms. I could read 5 Psalms a day for 30 days, but I knew some days, 1 Psalm would be more than enough and then I would get behind. I want the freedom to take my time without being bound by a plan. So I thought, what if I just start with Psalms and work my way through. So I opened to Psalm 1 and that’s when verse 3 popped out to me.

If This Is Healing, Let It Begin

Back in 2022 I had the opportunity to attend a women’s retreat with some dear friends in a place that has meant so much to me. Over the course of the weekend, we were challenged to behold Christ as a means to becoming whole. But in order to become whole, it meant confronting our brokenness.

On Saturday morning we entered our session ready to sit in God’s presence, when the speaker told us to take the bag under our chairs and hit it with a hammer.

Partaking in Manna

Have you ever been asked the question: “If you could travel back to any time in history, when and where would you go?” Well chances are, if you had asked me that question over the last few weeks, I may have answered with something along the lines of going back to the wilderness with the people of ancient Israel. Why? To experience one thing: manna.

We Don’t Lean On…

…Jesus? When I heard that phrase come from the pulpit at church recently, it stuck out to me. As it should. At face value that phrase sounds a lot like the opposite of something you would hear in church, but as is often the case, it was a way to get me to really tune in and pay attention to what was next.

When Maple Seeds Bloom

Photo Belongs to W. Pead – posted publicly in the New England Foliage Reports Facebook page.

I grew up in the heart of maple country — in a small town nestled in what is belovedly referred to as the NEK (Northeast Kingdom) of Vermont. Famous for vibrant fall colors throughout the rolling “Green Mountains”, the trees which boast such beauty each started from a single seed.

As a child I can still remember when the maple seeds would fall to the ground. Helicopters – that’s what we often called them. It was the simplest of joys to gather these seeds by the handful, tossing them back into the sky as high as I could, to watch them twirl over and over again to the grass below.

2022 Reflections…

If you didn’t read my post from last December, I ended it with this phrase:

So what’s next? Deeper with Jesus.

What you should know is that everything that follows in this post was written before I went back and read what I wrote last year. Not gonna lie – I’m somewhere between a “Haha, that’s funny God” and complete awe.

I wrote this, mostly as a reflective piece, but also, it is that time of the year where I have always enjoyed reading letters from people about their year. Social media has kinda removed the need for some of those end of year updates, but call me old fashioned. I still like to read them. To be honest, I had zero intentions of writing anything at all, until one night recently I was walking to get my mail. I really thought, “What would I even say? Nothing has really happened this year.”

And then God hit me upside the head with a holy 2×4 of reminders.

God My Trainer…Not My Professor

What has God spoken to your heart recently? The Bible doesn’t really use either of these titles for God or Jesus in its text [though one could argue that Shepherd and Teacher may be synonymous]. However, over the last couple of years I’ve been in a pretty intensive season of my life, and now that most of that season has come to a close, I’ve gained a fresh perspective on God’s character.

Here’s the story. The other day as I spent some time with Him, He spoke words to my heart like a trainer, while I was sitting at His feet thinking of Him as a professor.

One Year Later…So What’s Next?

“There’s a part of me that wants to actually start talking to Jesus about a potential what’s next and if I’m supposed to stay here long term. But that also terrifies me. Ik He knows it’s on my brain and has been, but idk if I’m at a point where I’m like fully ready to start that convo.”

If you’re sitting there moderately panicking or wondering if I’ve totally lost it, no worries! That was a text message I sent to a friend on December 1st, 2020.

Your Pain Is Not My Pain…But It’s Still Pain

7 months ago (tomorrow), I found myself talking with a wise woman because some stuff from my past had crept back into my heart and mind, and I needed some help navigating how it was manifesting itself in present day. When we sat down at a table on her back porch, we talked about trauma. Can I let you in on a little secret? We ALL have trauma.

El Roi

What comes to mind when you think of El Roi – “the God who sees”? To be honest, for most of the time that I’ve known this name of God, I would immediately have thoughts of Big Brother — a show I’ve never seen but understand the premise of. I would hear El Roi and think of God watching every little thing I do and documenting it all, but mostly looking for the things I did wrong so it could be blown up and broadcast for everyone to see. In case you’re wondering, that’s not the right view and it’s certainly not healthy! It’s been recently that God has refreshed my view of this name of His and I’m excited to share it!

I’m not a parent. That’s my disclaimer for the illustration I’m about to lay out. I do know many sets of parents and have interacted with many parents and their kids along the way…so hopefully this won’t be too off. But even if it is, this is the picture God has been speaking into my soul.

Majestic

Oh LORD, our Lord, how majestic is Your name in all the earth! You have set your glory above the heavens.
Psalm 8:1

If you’ve ever driven Interstate 90 from west to east across the state of New York, you’ll notice not too far from Buffalo that the flat landscape gives way to rolling hills. A few hours later, those rolling hills turn into the peaks of that Adirondack mountains. Just beyond those ridges, I’m welcomed home by the Green Mountains of Vermont.