You are reading the 64th issue of Drawing Near, a newsletter to encourage connection and inspire you to live a less lonely life. Each week, you'll receive inspiration for connecting with God, yourself, and the people around you. To see previous issues, go to our newsletter page.
A Note to Say Hi...
You know that awkward feeling when you want to reach out to someone you haven't talked to in a while? You long to catch up and connect, but you pause, because how do you explain why it's been so long? How do you say, "I want to keep in touch with you, but my life has been so full for [insert however much time it has been]."
How do you get past the small talk to what you really want to share and discuss? You get stuck on all the small what if's and wait. Unfortunately, the longer you wait, the harder it is to follow through on that desire to reach out.
Here I am to say, it's been a while, but I still long to connect with you. The same questions and pride that make you hesitate to contact an old friend are the same ones going through my head now. "What do I say when it's been so long? Will my friend be surprised to hear from me? Will she even remember me?"
My advice to you is the same I give myself now: just dive in. Maybe it's because I'm watching my daughter and her friends literally dive into the pool or maybe because it's one of my new favorite songs from Tori Kelly's new album, but dive I shall...
Today, I'm sharing some of my favorite ways to connect with God, myself, and others.
Connect with God
Do you have books that are comfort reads for you? I am not a re-reader. My daughter is. She has read the Harry Potter series at least five times. Once I've read something, the suspense is gone and I have so many other books I want to read!
But I do have a book of the Bible that's a comfort read. I enjoy re-reading the Psalms, and I have ones that I love to hear over and over again. One of them is Psalm 3, in particular verse 3 (ESV):
But you, O Lord, are a shield about me,
my glory, and the lifter of my head.
I love the imagery of the Lord lifting my head. We see this all the time in movies, the guy turning the girl's head with his finger crooked under her jaw. We see this move so much it feels rather cliché and annoying to me. But when I imagine God placing His hand on my face and tilting my head up, I feel a lift in my soul.
If you find comfort in Psalm 3 as well, here are some extras:
Connect with Yourself
One of my favorite ways to reflect and jot down some quick journaling is to the practice I learned from Emily P. Freeman called These are the Days of...
It's a section in her The Next Right Thing guided journal that I look forward to filling out a few times a month. It's a simple way to journal that doesn't even require complete sentences. Here's my list for today:
These are the days of...
- pool floats scattered everywhere
- mosquito bites
- teens sleeping in way too long
- pop up storms
- yogurt with blueberries, chia seeds, and granola for breakfast
- hydrangeas in full bloom
- transitioning from a part-time to a full-time job
It's an easy way to connect with yourself and name your season of life. I've already enjoyed looking pack at my previous journals to see what patterns, habits, and routines were present.
Try it. Glance through pics on your phone, look over your planner, think about the meals you are making over and over again and document them somewhere.
Connect with Others
"Nothing is what it's supposed to be if love is not at the core."
-Theo
If you're looking for a fiction book with themes like "the power of creative generosity, the importance of wonder to a purposeful life, and the invisible threads of kindness that bind us to one another," then I recommend you read Theo of Golden. When I read that description, I smiled, because I knew it was perfect for you and me—that is, readers of Drawing Near.**
It's not an action-packed book, but more thought provoking. Don't worry, all the mysteries are solved at the end.
Connect with the Community!
Do you have a comfort read? A verse or book of the Bible or even a fiction book? Reply to this email and let me know! I'd love to share your answers in the next email.
Just like lots of phone conversations with old friends, this email is too long and too short at the same time! All I had to do was get started and then I couldn't stop. I hope you find something to fill you up and inspire you to draw near.
*If you like listening to Emily's voice reading Psalm 3, you may enjoy the list I compiled on Spotify with all of her Psalms readings. I like to listen to it while I walk in the mornings.
**Maybe we need a name for readers of this newsletter. Draw Near-ers? Draw-ers? Yeah, I definitely can't think of anything right now.
