I feel warm affection for you who read this newsletter, who share the desire to live from a place of internal rest—even as the world (close and far) churns around us. It would be lovely to gather and share experiences—laugh and cry and pray together.
For now, I want to acknowledge the known and unknown challenges in your spot on the globe and include one of ours. Would you be so kind as to pray for our friends and colleagues in North Carolina (and surrounding areas) who have been devastated by the “once in a thousand years” rainstorm that came on the heels of Hurricane Helene (turned Tropical Storm Helene).
We are currently in Orlando at a convention for pastors and their families from across the south eastern states that has been years in the planning. Many of our colleagues will not make it now—stuck in homes without electricity or lights or focusing on helping the communities they are part of. I just heard from a friend who reports casualties including broken ribs and hips that occurred when a group at a men’s retreat in Ashville was buried in mud for a time after they were slammed by a mudslide and pummeled by trees falling on the roof.
I don’t know what’s going on where you are, but I hold you also in prayer.
Alicia