Oct 25, 2019
Friends, it’s been a minute. I stopped doing the Friday Five when I somehow gathered almost five jobs and now I find myself with only two (sometimes three). Perhaps in my free time, I’ll be able to read more of the internet and share it with you. I’m not going to promise that this will be a weekly occurrence, but should I find some tweets that I like, I’ll add them in here too. I might even try to write on this thing every so often. They say the blog is dead; I say we can make them cool again. Really, I’m just a collector. The blog is a place to collect things—fun stories, thoughts, links, and tweets. Here are just a few of my favorite things from the past several months: A book for every age. Have you read the one for your current age? Speaking of books, Little Women is one of my favorites. I loved the 1994 movie and this oral history of it did not disappoint. Listen. to this podcast. Dolly Parton’s America explores a theme I’ve been noticing myself in the last couple of years. And one of the guys who does RadioLab, arguably the best produced podcast, is behind this one, so it’s a great listen on multiple levels. I somehow found this poem, “The Opposite Game,” and I recommend it. I’ve recently become interested in this Instagram feed. Who wants to go in with me to just buy a fixer-upper somewhere in Maine? This music video is the happiness your Friday needs. ...
Oct 22, 2019
Social media and the internet in general can have a pretty negative connotation these days. Broadcasting our lives online and having access to so much information often fuels issues with identity, bullying, stewardship, anxiety, anger, and more. However, social media and the internet can also be beautiful tools used to create community, resource leaders, and point women toward the Word of God. If I were to ask you if you’ve ever bought something you saw on Instagram or Facebook, I’m guessing you’d say yes. If I asked you if you’d ever been to an event based solely on social media, some of you will raise your hands. We’ve all done it. I’ve made purchases, gone to events, and made lifelong friends through the internet. It’s not all bad! Read the rest at the LifeWay Women...
Sep 29, 2019
This weekend we celebrated the retirement of one of our event team members who keeps everyone safe on the road. He stood at the center of everyone’s attention (a place he hates) and said, “This is a ministry for me.” And it struck me that everyone feels that way about what they do at our events. (Please note here that “ministry” does not always equal “fun” or “peaceful” or “lovely.”) For the simulcast events to take place, incredibly talented people use their gifts and talents to do the ministries of administration, of marketing, of customer service, of unloading boxes, of selling resources, of taking pictures. The ministries of lights, of screen lyrics, of microphones and stage directing, of cameras, of computers and the technology it takes to get a live feed around the world practically glitch-free, of translating in Spanish and ASL. And yes, the ministries of teaching and leading in worship and shepherding an audience through the day. But also the ministries of prayer and compassion, the ones we may never know about, and the ministry of invitation. Sometimes we who are used to this make jokes about the ministry of taping up signs or the ministry of going to get coffee. When really, this is what ministry is. Doing what needs to be done, doing what God has gifted you uniquely to do or placed you uniquely to do. Ultimately, we do these things so that He can minister to the hearts of others. I don’t always get to go to our events, but this weekend my job was to tweet and Instagram and Facebook, answering...
Mar 19, 2019
Recently while talking about my job, a friend said something about the gravity of it—handling the Word of God, editing the words of teachers who influence millions around the globe. The gravity, the heaviness, the privilege of this work hits me every so often. I have to admit, not every day. Some days, I come in and like a scientist or a scholar look at the Bible and dissect it. I wax poetically about dashes and commas and ellipses. But the Word of God is living and active and some days I realize the gravity of that. I pray over my work. I give thanks for my work. I nearly come to tears thinking of the heaviness of this privilege. Beth Moore once said, “You can know that you may be in the right place if it is beyond what you can do because that is where the all surpassing power of God is shown. And it’s of Him, not of us.” This job, this work, is beyond what I can do. Not just because I have seemingly ten new deadlines every day. Not just because I may or may not have failed Greek class once or twice. Because Scripture is holy, it is the primary means by which our God—the God of the heavens and the earth—tells us about Himself. It convicts, it encourages, it challenges, it distributes hope. The Word of God reminds us of the faithfulness of God. Properly handling that sacred text? It is beyond what I can do. So maybe, just maybe, I’m in the right place. Even if that right place is...
Dec 16, 2018
Each week during Advent, my church (like probably many of yours) invites a family up to tell about that week’s Advent candle, read a passage from Scripture, pray, and light the candle. This week they asked me to do that. I really don’t love being on stage and talking (with the exception of being totally ridiculous and hosting made-up game shows). My palms start sweating, my feet lose all feeling, and my voice fluctuates from shaky to “is-she-crying-right-now?” Suffice it to say that this was not in my comfort zone. But I said yes. I said yes because I love being a part of a church that considers me a family unit. I don’t have to wait until I’m married or have kids to serve and lead and be a part of the church family. When I brought up the fact that logistically I wasn’t sure I could read from the Bible and hold a microphone and light the candle, my pastor said, “We will make sure someone is there to light the candle for you.” Then he stepped in and did so. This is the family of God—made up of family units of five, of seven, of two, of one. It takes all of us to “light the candle,” if you’ll allow the metaphor, to show the world what it looks like to be a part of the church, the family made possible through Christ our Lord. This week’s candle represented joy for our church. Joy because our Savior has come and because He will come again to make all things new. And when He makes all...
Sep 13, 2018
There are many kinds of home, different places we belong, that belong to us. I lived in Oxford for only three months, but it is one of my homes. I belong there. Oxford belongs to who I was and am. It may seem overly romantic to refer to it in that way, but I think we all have those places—our home(s). They become a part of who we are in a way other geographical points do not and therefore deserve a little romance. We visited Oxford on our trip, me playing tour guide for my family. Here’s where I walked in the dark to the river, linking arms with Carol because we could not see the hands in front of our faces. Here’s where I raced down the river, sprint-rowing to win. Here’s where I lived—now it’s combined with the flat next door. Here’s where I studied. Here’s the library—I vowed not to take food or flames in there. Some things had changed. I got lost a couple of times walking down the once-familiar paths. But my favorite view of home remained...
Aug 11, 2018
Listen. I was in Dallas a lot in June and July. I know they have internet there, too, but the point is that I was busy. So I missed a lot of Twitter. Through the magic of catch-up lists and Twitter showing me everything anyone I follow has ever read, I was able to pull together a tweets of the two-months club. You’re welcome. Other than that, I’m not sure we need a lot of “remember when?” context for these tweets. Which is good, because Twitter is my news and I wasn’t on Twitter as much, ergo I don’t really know/remember what all happened in the world during those two months. Nonetheless, here are the best tweets I read in June and July! Enjoy! Somewhere a husband bought some for his wife. Somewhere a mother bought some for her children. Somewhere a coworker bought some for her office. Somewhere a friend bought some for his friend. National Donut Day isn't a day. It's a revolution of love. — Sammy Rhodes (@sammyrhodes) June 1, 2018 Happy 222nd Birthday Tennessee. I'm proud to call you home.https://t.co/1HsBHkTKGF — Drew Holcomb (@drewholcomb) June 1, 2018 Where were you when you found out @drmoore was an enneagram 4 — Richard Clark (@TheRichardClark) June 2, 2018 We ain’t got time for motivational speeches. Preach the Word. — Dean Inserra (@deaninserra) June 3, 2018 Nothing like not being able to locate your Bible to make you feel like a super great Christian. 😂🙈 — Laura McClellan (@laura_mcclellan) June 4, 2018 Wife: I’m not sure what to do about the bookshelf situation.Me: We have too many books?Wife: We have...
Jul 15, 2018
Sometimes I get carried away with thinking I’m independent. I own my own house; I have a grown-up job; I go on solo vacations; I see movies alone. Then the 67-year-old pipes in my own house spring a leak. And water stops flowing in. And everything needs to be replaced. And I remember I am not made to be independent. I, like all of us, am made to be dependent. The past nineteen (19!) days have been the perfect reminder that I need other people. My coworkers and friends housed me and gave me a lot of grace and my parents did both those things plus helped me hire and supervise the plumber for an entire week. I’m grateful to God for the community He gives, the people who remind us we don’t want to do life alone. We can’t do any of this alone. Thank you for being there for...
Jun 3, 2018
Listen, May was not the best of months. Twitter was often an accurate reflection of the hurt, the tragedy, the anger that we all felt. For the purposes of this post, we’re going to ignore most of that—not to run away, but because sometimes we just need some laughter and royal wedding coverage. Here are some of the loveliest, funniest, most entertaining tweets to cross my Twitter feed this month. I feel like every headline about nutrition or diet or exercise should simply read “Science Debunks Science Until Next Time“. — Barnabas Piper (@BarnabasPiper) May 1, 2018 If you live in the south, there’s a good chance your biggest mission field is people who have grown up in a culture where you can be a Christian without Jesus. — Dean Inserra (@deaninserra) May 1, 2018 About that time of the year when I try to become friends with people who have access to a pool — David DeWeil (@daviddeweil) May 1, 2018 When your phone autocorrects “talk” to “y’all”, you know you’ve contextualized to the South. — Daniel Darling (@dandarling) May 2, 2018 “You look so sunkissed!” thanks my bronzer and I got in an accident this morning so now it’s my whole face — allyson (@allysonkate) May 2, 2018 What I lack in communication skills, I make up for in .gif selection expertise. — John Crist (@johnbcrist) May 2, 2018 Want to feel old? Me neither but here we are. — Tyler Huckabee (@TylerHuckabee) May 2, 2018 PSA from brother J, age 8: pic.twitter.com/4n6QTuKi1L — Amanda B. Williams (@biblewilliams) May 3, 2018 Current State Of The World: #1...
May 31, 2018
Photo by Olya /Voloshka on Unsplash It doesn’t take a lot of searching these days to find lament. Rightly so, because we hear constantly of God’s image bearers being mistreated, killed, wounded, and abused. We lament. This month, as we’re reading through God’s Word, we read excerpts from the major prophets. These prophets were often tasked with speaking doom and gloom over God’s people. They were charged to challenge His people to repent and to turn back to the one true God. It is believed that Jeremiah wrote Lamentations. The “weeping prophet” wrote a book full of woe during one of the darkest times in Jewish history, during the overthrow of Jerusalem in 586 B.C. As we read snippets of the messages God called His prophets to speak over His people, we also read Lamentations 3. Scholars believe this chapter is the central chapter of the lament. It begins darkly. Read the rest at...
Elizabeth Hyndman likes drinking tea, using parentheses, and living in Nashville. Follow her on twitter @edhyndman.