April 2015 – everything He gives

An Invitation to Savor

April 16, 2015April 16, 2015 MarthaKimball4 Comments

There are few people whose voice I want to hear speaking into my every day, but Shauna Niequist is one of them.

I was so thrilled to receive her latest book, which is a daily devotional called Savor: Living Abundantly Where You Are, As You Are. My introduction to Niequist was in reading her last book, Bread & Wine, which has since lived in my kitchen amongst my three most used cookbooks, and it looks like this:

Yes, as you can see, my copy of Bread & Wine is well-loved. And if you aren’t familiar with Shauna Niequist than you must know: the woman loves food, but not just for the sake of food alone, but for the gathering that happens around the table. For the way sharing a meal together cracks our hearts wide open to one another, breaks down stiff walls between each other, thaws out our awkwardness toward one another. The way opening our homes and inviting someone in says, “I see you. I want to know you. I want to give you something my hands have made. I want to share life with you.” Because of her love for good, nourishing food and the power of a meal shared with loved ones, Niequist often incorporates her favorite recipes into her writing.

Savor is no exception! Not only is the book beautifully designed, with hand-lettering by Lindsay Letters accenting the linen cover + each page, but it is also thicker than I expected and has gorgeous navy blue edged pages. Her recipes are sprinkled throughout the book, reminding you that “spiritual living happens not just when we read and pray, but also when we gather with family and friends over dinners and breakfasts and late-night snacks” (back cover), including a wide variety of recipes such as Blueberry Yogurt Breakfast Cake, Wild Rice Salad, Curried Cauliflower, Fregolotta, Thai Beef Salad, and Grilled Peach + Caramel Sundaes. I’ve already been busy cooking out of it, as you can see.

In this devotional, each day begins with a short scripture and a pertinent reflection, encouraging you to savor this life, to savor each day that God has given. Each day finishes with a question for reflection. You know an author is gifted at her craft when her words stay with you months or years afterwards, when those words rattle around in your bones and start to live and grow deep in the soil of your own heart. When that writer communicates the way she sees life so clearly that you can see it, too, and your own vision is transformed. This is how Shauna writes. She will inspire you to move beyond surviving your days to paying attention to them, slowing down, feasting, savoring.

“So read and learn and pray and cook and share. Remember to savor each day, whatever it holds: work and play, coffee and kids, meals and prayers and the good stuff and the hard stuff. Life is all about relationships, and your daily relationship with God is worth savoring in every moment.”

My only complaint is that each day’s reading leaves me wanting more! Shauna’s words are evocative, stirring, and true, and a couple paragraphs is just not enough!

* * * * *

Thanks to HarperCollins Christian Publishing for a free copy of this book in exchange for my honest review. All opinions expressed are my own.

Making

April 10, 2015April 10, 2015 MarthaKimball2 Comments

“For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them.” (Ephesians 2:10)

Lately I’ve been playing around with making things. I think there are a few reasons why I suddenly feel the need to make more art, but one sticks out to me in particular. When you are busy in the work of parenting + homemaking, when this life of laundry, meal making, dishes, discipline, training, playing, errands, and mundane rhythms is your everyday, it can feel sort of endless. The long-haul nature of it can wear on a person who likes to see a finished product or an accomplished goal. The reality is, we cross many things off our lists every day, we finish a lot of menial tasks every day, and that counts for something important and it feels GOOD. Then, little feet jump out of bed in the morning and the tidiness and order gives way to glorious chaos once again. It’s the reality of our work as mothers, bringing some semblance of order from chaos day in and day out.

Beyond the actual work of managing and running a home, the work of raising little people into adulthood is D A U N T I N G. If we look too far ahead, we can feel entirely overwhelmed and underprepared for what lies in the future. The thing about parenthood is, it’s a fairly thankless and inglorious job. More than that, it’s a marathon not a sprint. Not even a cute little 5k. It’s long-haulish. Because of that, we find ourselves parenting to our particular children’s individual needs + bents and we see little glimpses of progress, but more often than not (at least in our home) we slap our proverbial foreheads and think, “How many hundreds of times have I told you this?!?!” (Or maybe we actually say it, if we are having a weak moment.)

It’s such a work of slow returns and slow progress. Surely progress is happening, growth is happening right under our noses, but it’s often as imperceptible as our children’s physical growth.

Maybe that’s why I’ve been craving some crafty projects lately, things that I can start, work on, and F I N I S H and see that I have, in fact, accomplished something. Not only is the work itself soothing and relaxing, but the end product reminds me that I am still able to accomplish something lasting. It reminds me that one day, I will see all the days of labor that melted into weeks, into months, into years produce a great harvest. It even whispers to me that much like my children are, in a sense, the masterpiece my life is working to produce, in the very process of this … God is making a masterpiece out of me. All the intense ways that motherhood presses me–it’s shaping and forming me more into the image He is after, the image of His Son. I am His workmanship, and His goal is for me to grow up into full spiritual maturity.

“…until we all attain to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to mature manhood, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ, so that we may no longer be children, tossed to and fro by the waves and carried about by every wind of doctrine, by human cunning, by craftiness in deceitful schemes. Rather, speaking the truth in love, we are to grow up in every way into him who is the head, into Christ, from whom the whole body, joined and held together by every joint with which it is equipped, when each part is working properly, makes the body grow so that it builds itself up in love.” (Ephesians 4:13-16)

When we grow weary in the seemingly endless and slow-producing work of parenting, let us remember He is parenting us and we are just as slow and stubborn and forgetful as our darling children. And if it helps to alleviate some stress or to give you that sense of satisfaction that comes from accomplishing + finishing something? Go make something. It could be anything… a batch of cookies, a meal, a card, a bouquet of wildflowers, a hand-sewn or embroidered dress. Enjoy the small steps, the small minutes of working with your hands, producing something, and seeing your effort come to fruition in the end product. And while you’re at it, remember, you are His workmanship, His masterpiece, to the praise of His glorious grace.

(The weaving pictured above was inspired by the lovely Beautiful Mess blog + you can find free tutorials for weaving here. This weaving was my first and I’m already working on another!)

easter

April 7, 2015 MarthaKimball1 Comment

This Easter was special in so many ways. I’m learning to treasure this time of year more + more as I continue to learn about the significance of the resurrection of Jesus for my day-to-day living. My children, each year, are more able to share in that understanding and excitement. It was Philippa’s first Easter and the first year my older two were able to really enjoy hunting for hidden eggs. It was so sweet to see Phoebe intentionally leave eggs for Noah to find and hear her calling out to him, telling him where to look. It was the first year we sort of had a very simple kind of Passover meal (though I forgot the unleavened bread and couldn’t get the readings to print in time, and we had it on Easter day instead of Maundy Thursday). A certain four-year-old of mine got her first pair of “heels” for Easter, much to daddy’s chagrin. What was super special and such a humbling honor was the opportunity to share with my church family a little about my story of getting lost in the snowy Colorado backcountry 14 years ago and God’s hand in preserving my life (which you can read more about here), along with a few others who shared particular ways God showed Himself strong on their behalf in the midst of difficult times. It made our Easter worship at church extra special for me! It was pretty much impossible this year to get a good family picture, but we captured what we could. Hope your day was special celebrating our risen + living Savior with loved ones!

The Gospels

April 2, 2015April 2, 2015 MarthaKimballLeave a comment

It’s spitting rain outside right now. A dreary start to the week, but I don’t mind. The house is quiet, all three children, two of which are sick, asleep in their beds. I can hear the tapping of rain against the roof and windows, a quiet rhythm, a beckoning.

Quietly, I set the percolator back on the stove, the smell of freshly ground beans fills the kitchen. I make my way to the fireplace, to the desk. Normally I don’t allow myself such a luxury during nap time, but I’m battling this head cold too and my body is asking for rest. I’m relieved, grateful for the excuse. My soul has been so full lately, aching to spill out.

This season of motherhood is busy. It pulls me in a lot of different directions. Aside from that, our culture spins on the wheels of distraction. So many things vie for our attention and seek our focus. We have to protect our focus, friends. What are the main things? What can I simply not live without? What is my mission, my purpose, my calling? This is a process we return to again and again, we get out of balance and find ourselves exhausted, overrun, and numb. We go back to the drawing board, we go back to our focus and we pare down what has come in and choked out our time and energy. We pare down what might be good but not best. We remind ourselves to stay fully present in this present season, that other seasons may come when our time must be managed differently. But for now, hand to the plow, girls, hand to the plow.

“Don’t work for shortcuts to God. The market is flooded with surefire, easy going formulas for a successful life that can be practiced in your spare time. Don’t fall for that stuff, even though crowds of people do. The way of life–to God–is vigorous and requires total attention.”
{Matt. 7:13-14 MSG}

You may know by now that I’m a resource geek. I love finding + sharing helpful books and tools to spur myself and others on in our journey to knowing Christ better and in displaying His glory in our lives. And we certainly do live in an age + current culture of endless resources. There are always more books, bible studies, online communities, and great companies to support.

The voices can crowd in and get a bit loud.

That’s how I found myself at the start of 2015, looking for a quiet refuge. Feeling that my soul has gotten a bit harried. Hurried and harried. I love bible study resources more than any girl you know, but that still small voice that I’ve come to know and trust has been calling me to quiet down. To come back to just the pure Word. No other voices. Just His.

I found myself aching to spend time with Jesus. Of course, I know all of Scripture is God-breathed, all of it is His inspired word, all of it points to Jesus. But suddenly I find myself aching to walk with Jesus and hear His red-letter words, to study and become exceedingly familiar with the three years of His precious life that we find recorded in the Gospels. I find myself needing just to journey beside Him on His earthly journey. What was He like? What were His priorities? How did He spend His time? Did He rest? Did He celebrate? Did He laugh? I remember watching the Bible series that came out not too long ago on the History channel, and feeling the winsome pull of this Jesus even imperfectly rendered in the series. So much so that when He went to the cross (on the show) I missed Him. I felt the missing of Him that I imagine the disciples felt when He was just gone. I wept from the missing of Him and the longing for full fellowship with Him promised to us in glory that I can only begin to understand through His indwelling Spirit now. A foretaste of glory.

Looking back, I had the best college experience imaginable. I never saw it coming. You see, I fell in love with Jesus in the pages of scripture when I was 18 years old, living on my own in the rugged snowy peaks of Breckenridge, Colorado. Something shifted then in my heart, and although I had been a Christian since childhood, I was suddenly hooked by God’s word. I couldn’t wait to study it and I couldn’t get enough. It began in the Gospel of Mark. With a commentary in hand and a journal, I read and studied and devoured God’s Word. Shortly thereafter, in a strange turn of events, God interrupted my plan and brought me back to the gentle mountains of North Carolina to college at Montreat. I fell in love with God there and He renewed and reformed me there. My understanding of Him was so broken and He opened my eyes to the edges of His hugeness, the mere fringes of His glory. I studied Outdoor Education, but I took + audited as many bible courses as I could possibly fit into my schedule. One my favorites was a course called “Gospels” with Bill Cain. He was the college Chaplain at the time, and he made a great impact on my life. He was so winsome, so joyful. I had never read and been immersed in the Gospels before like I was during that semester. I remember reading Yancey’s book “The Jesus I Never Knew” and just falling in love with Jesus all over again. I thought I knew Him, but He was a beautiful mystery.

Now, I am thirty years old, as old as He was when He began His earthly ministry, when He turned water to wine. My husband just turned thirty-three, the age Jesus was when He went to the cross. It’s hard to imagine that He completed His work at age thirty-three, a work so revolutionary it would forever divide history into two eras: B.C. and A.D. Before Christ + After Death. We mark our entire human history around those three years.

And I’m thirty. It’s sobering. I am called to be the literal and physical hands + feet of Jesus to the world around me. I am equipped with the same power He had to perform the miraculous. In fact, He said I would be able to work even greater works than His. And so, I’ve been in Matthew. I know I’ll dip into some other studies over the course of the year along with my church family and as God leads, but all year long, I intend to walk with Jesus in the Gospels, all the while asking Him to make it new. To make me new.

I can’t even begin to tell you how precious and fruitful it has already been. It’s like standing beneath a firehose with an open mouth, trying to drink it all in. It’s hard to read the Gospels and not be struck by the shift in paradigm from the kingdom of men (constantly at work building our own kingdoms) to the kingdom of God. It’s hard to read the Gospels and not see all the incongruities of my life and the life that Christ exemplifies and calls me to. It’s hard to read the Gospels and not feel a bit uncomfortable with how comfortable I’ve grown in the world–how the constant barrage + current of the world system continually and daily pushes against me, tugging me to go along downstream, to go with the flow. The kingdom life will look + feel like constant resistance, constant work. A life surrounded by needy people — people who need hope, love, life, healing, forgiveness.

I read Matthew chapter 9 and I am absolutely floored by its end. I literally read it in tears:

“Then Jesus went about all the cities and villages, teaching in their synagogues, preaching the gospel of the kingdom, and healing every sickness and every disease among the people. But when He saw the multitudes, He was moved with compassion for them, because they were weary and scattered, like sheep having no shepherd. Then He said to His disciples, “The harvest truly is plentiful, but the laborers are few. Therefore pray the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into His harvest.” (vs. 35-38)

Can you imagine Jesus in the flesh preaching the Gospel to you? Oh, to have heard that. What a mess we were, and yet He was moved with compassion. He sees how scattered and weary we are, bumbling about like idiotic sheep, scrambling, looking, bleating for a shepherd.

Listen to it again, in the Message translation:

Then Jesus made a circuit of all the towns and villages. He taught in their meeting places, reported kingdom news, and healed their diseased bodies, healed their bruised and hurt lives. When he looked out over the crowds, his heart broke. So confused and aimless they were, like sheep with no shepherd. “What a huge harvest!” he said to his disciples. “How few workers! On your knees and pray for harvest hands!”

It’s nearly more than I can bear. I can’t wait to fall more in love with Jesus through the Gospel accounts and remembering what He was busy about when He was busy on this earth in the frail bounds of a human body. If you’re looking for a place to read, if you’re curious who this Jesus is, consider joining me? Grab your bible and a journal and read just a little bit a day and record what He says to you. Write down what confuses you, what questions it raises. Chase all the rabbit trails. Take your time. Let’s grow very familiar with Jesus together, friends. Let’s fall in love with Him all over again.

Share this:

Share this:

Share this:

Share this: