Many people have asked me, over the last couple weeks, how I’m feeling about this trip to Sierra Leone. Excited? Yes. Nervous? Yes. But feelings are something I’m not so great at, so those two options seem only partially true. I have a hard time answering the ‘how are you feeling’ question in normal situations. … More Call Me Jonah
It’s partly the expression of my inner rebel; partly the rewards reaped from such an endeavor. This thing Cyrus and I did last year, having an UNword – a word we were diligent to delete from our vocabulary – well, we’ve found it to be a positive, beneficial, forward moving practice for us each individually … More Our UNword for 2019
My first instinct is to apologize for a late Christmas Greeting, but don’t you think this is a season meant to linger anyway? So, here is our family’s Christmas greeting to you (the digital version, since there was no paper version this year). We started a new tradition this Christmas season – puzzles! We worked … More Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!!! Love, the Rettmann Family
The attack assailed me – swift and unexpected. I was turned the other direction, fortifying different strategic locations. A word. A thought. A deception. It sneaked in and lodged itself in a vulnerable and fatigued corner of my mind. Fiery darts robed in questions. Questions craftily construed by the Enemy. They say there are no … More Softer is Stronger
Her presence reaches beyond the bounds of her physical body. At least it seems from where I’m sitting, a few chairs over at our shared round banquet table. We share a table at dinner. We share a similar height and hair color. We share the role of mother and the desire for work for the … More Twisted Admiration
Sometimes I feel left behind. Many times, especially when my kids were younger, I felt like my Pastor husband was on the front lines of ministry – going on trips, attending lunch meetings, responding to church member’s emergencies – while I was left back at home to ‘just’ take care of the kids and the … More Baggage Watching
A single word of deceit sauntered from my tongue, ‘no.’ It was a simple solution, this one word, for side-stepping a discussion I didn’t want to have. I knew in that moment what my husband did not – I bore a scarlet ‘L.’ Some may call it a white lie, avoiding the topic, harmless. However … More I’d Rather Be Shattered
Some days I pause to read God’s Word, expecting great new insight or encouragement, only to finish without receiving such things. Though I never regret investing my time this way. Other days, I pause to read with few expectations, only to be met by the most intimate communication from my Creator. Such was Thursday morning … More You Have Done Well
Delight is changing my vision. The hymn writer says, Turn your eyes upon Jesus, look full in His wonderful face, and the things of earth will grow strangely dim, in the light of His glory and grace. I’ve experienced these words. A glimpse of Glory makes all else seem false, dirty, drab. But that’s not all … More Shards of Light
I have to confess something. I was afraid to observe Lent. Coming on the heels of my pursuit of delight (you can read that post here – Softening and Delight), Lent seemed a logical contradiction. Also, there’s that whole fear of failing thing. But I’m beginning to understand that maybe denying self IS delight. Maybe suffering … More Joy-empowered Suffering
