by Elaine Olsen | Jul 24, 2024 | calling, grace, pilgrimage
Sometimes you need an extra week. Sometimes two weeks is not enough for you to take hold of a new thing or for a new thing to take hold of you. Sometimes… New things need extra doses of grace and understanding … and time. Let me explain. As my children were growing...
by Elaine Olsen | Jul 11, 2020 | Asbury, dad, grace, mentoring, trust, truth
“Rehearse your history with God.” This was my recommendation to my family last night as we sat around the dinner table. Our discussions lean toward the “heavy” these days. So much going on in the world. Chaos, confusion, concerns. You know. And out of that deep well...
by Elaine Olsen | Jun 12, 2019 | grace, ministry life, packing up
“When they landed, they saw a fire of burning coals there with fish on it, and some bread.” –John 21:9 Finish strong. I used those words repeatedly in the classroom as the fourth nine weeks of the academic school year arrived. Students have a tendency to...
by Elaine Olsen | Jun 20, 2017 | death, grace, grief, letting go
Grace’s words surprised me that night. I wasn’t expecting them. What I was expecting … well, I’m not quite sure. I’d never been down this road before. Just an hour earlier, I was eating orange sherbet while sitting on a couch next to my mother-in-law, Rosalie, when...
by Elaine Olsen | Jun 28, 2016 | creation, family fun, fellowship with God, grace, joy, knowing God, parenting, peace, thanksgiving, worship
These are days of plenty. This is a season of more-than-enough. This is holy generosity dispensed to me by the King. This isn’t a season of less-than, although as of late I have been tempted to argue otherwise: • Aging parents and accumulating needs making their...
by Elaine Olsen | Feb 26, 2015 | freedom, grace, Lessons from the Lunchroom, living God's truth
Quietly, she approached my desk and inquired about her quiz grade. I perused the papers in front of me and found hers. “You made a 76.” Her distress was apparent, burying her head in the palms of her hands. Normally, a 76 wouldn’t warrant such a response from this...
