Dear Church, I love you. I want to say that right from the start. If I didn’t, I probably wouldn’t bother writing about this. I would be content to let the day pass and the pain, mixed messages, discomfort that so many of your sisters and brothers feel about this day could be overlooked. But, I love you and I…
When endurance wins, the pathway becomes clear—from suffering to endurance, which
builds character, ending in a hope that does not disappoint—it requires the absence of isolation
(a.k.a., having real community). This is victory.
There are no words today for what took place. If I could explain it to you in a way that may convey the magnitude, I would say an earthquake of the heart was felt. The tremors reverberate and everything shakes but the foundations seem to be staying firm. Today a line was drawn in the sand. The scene will be…
Milestones are something I appreciate. They aren’t always good milestones but they are markers which often help me rebalance and refocus. Recently, we hit the milestone of a year in our new home. A new job. A new season of life. One year on, I can’t help looking back whilst we begin looking forward to Christmas and enjoy the season…
I am an enneagram type 4. This won’t mean a lot to many people but if you know, you know. I have big feelings. So, when a year draws to close and a new one begins, I fall into a reflective mood. Perhaps I should backtrack a little. In the last few months I have said goodbye to the part…
I’m currently in one of those seasons when I feel like I’m not at my best. I recognise it because when I’m chatting to people I want to sit them down and tell them ‘this isn’t me’. Normally I’ve got more energy or enthusiasm or ideas and I’m fun to hang out with, but right now I feel like I’m…
I’ve just realised that I’m scared. For a few weeks, probably months if I’m honest, I’ve held on to this unsettled feeling, I’ve dreaded dates in the diary and what the future might hold and unfortunately for Dave, I’ve been a bit fragile. Basically, I can go from happy to crying very quickly, which I think still scares and confuses…
Re-imagining what life looks like when confronted by childlessness and infertility is a common theme throughout Saltwater and Honey. We are so grateful to guest blogger Sue who is sharing her personal story below. A few weeks ago, I had a full hysterectomy – everything out – tubes, ovaries and womb. Nothing that unusual in this, it is an operation…
Spoiler alert!! So today on national television I will tell St Pam Rhodes that I cannot pray for a child for myself. My Songs of Praise interview actually happened a few weeks ago and as soon as those words fell from my lips I felt both pride and shame in equal measure as I sought to explain the complexity of…
I’m writing this from my single room in a retreat house in the heart of Essex. I’ve just had dinner with a nun, a Rector and a saintly old lady from Suffolk. I am a fish out of water. Going on retreat has been a longing of mine for a while. I’m here for 24 hours after blackmailing Elis into…