by Elaine Olsen | Jun 19, 2013 | church life, faith, knowing God, letting go, living God's truth, ministry life, packing up, pilgrimage
This isn’t my first rodeo. In the course of my lifetime, I’ve lived in five different states, ten cities, and changed physical addresses at least eighteen times. My family and I are less than a week away from making it number nineteen. A new home. New...
by Elaine Olsen | Jun 6, 2013 | family fun, friendship, grace, hunger, kingdom, letting go, packing up, parenting, pilgrimage
It’s not much. Just an old table with two even older chairs. I spied them alongside Hwy. 70 while winding my way home from my annual run to the eye doctor. My U-turn came as no surprise to my eldest son who made the trek with me; after twenty-four years of being my...
by Elaine Olsen | May 27, 2013 | living God's truth, obedience, peace for the journey, pilgrimage, provision, trust
A few words latch tightly onto my spirit this morning. Not “what if”, Elaine, but rather “what is”. What is. What if I could just live there instead of living in the interminable list of maybes? I’m going to try. With God’s help I’m going to endeavor to live in the...
by Elaine Olsen | Apr 7, 2013 | faith, living God's truth, ministry life, packing up, pilgrimage, surrender, trust
“Blessed are those whose strength is in you, who have set their hearts on pilgrimage.” –Psalm 84:5 Her heart spilled over into mine as I read the struggle in her words. Another pastor’s wife, just like me, living the itinerant lifestyle—a nomadic calling...
by Elaine Olsen | Mar 23, 2013 | alicia chole, Easter, friendship, grace, knowing God, pilgrimage, the seventh year
“It’s the people . . . all about the people for me. They are where I find God.” So I told my new friend from the 7th year, both of us participants in Alicia Chole’s Leadership Investment Intensive. Half-way between her house and mine rests Bellamy Manor and Gardens...
by Elaine Olsen | Feb 28, 2013 | hunger, knowing God, living God's truth, obedience, pilgrimage, rest, right words; right timing, silence, the seventh year
I’m not a huge fan of the Academy Awards, not because I have anything against honoring quality art via the silver screen but mostly because of the seemingly endless parade of the self-impressed. Couple this with the fact that I haven’t seen ninety-nine percent...