by Elaine Olsen | Jan 14, 2014 | faith, fellowship with God, grief, living God's truth, loss, pain, suffering, trust, truth
“Therefore we do not lose heart. Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day. For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all.” -2 Cor. 4:16-17 Yet inwardly. As...
by Elaine Olsen | Jan 5, 2014 | grief, pain, parenting, prayer, suffering, sundays
Paint my boy a Sabbath sunrise, Father – one filled with the color of hope, not the cover of despair. Take the pain that’s been smeared onto his canvas at night and replace it with splashes of your morning grace. What she has taken from him, replace it with what you...
by Elaine Olsen | Dec 4, 2013 | christmas, hunger, letting go, living God's truth, pain, parenting, peace, suffering, surrender, worship
Silent night. It’s been one of those for me. I tried to fill it with a few phone calls and text messages to friends while waiting in my car for my kids to emerge from their youth group meeting. No one answered. All was silent, and the hush filled my heart until I...
by Elaine Olsen | Aug 20, 2013 | courage, faith, God's Word, Lessons from the Lunchroom, living God's truth, persecution, prayer, strength, suffering, surrender
I listen to their voices as they herald their morning choruses. Songs of faith. Melodies written in antiquity, yet music still breathing the living witness of God. I hear them recite their morning verses. Words of faith. Scripture written in antiquity, yet...
by Elaine Olsen | Feb 21, 2013 | cancer, cancer volume 4, friendship, grief, suffering
It’s been a long time since I’ve raised a toast to my cancer season and uttered the words, “Bless you, Cancer.” I’m glad I haven’t forgotten how to do so. There’s been a lengthy span of less thankfulness and more confusion in recent days. Not so this past weekend. On...
by Elaine Olsen | Sep 23, 2012 | cancer, cancer volume 4, pain, suffering
I’m not a fan of coming here . . . too many memories and a pocketful of worries. It’s not the people inside; they represent some of the best of the best. Dr. Habal and his surgical, oncology team are uniquely gifted in doing what they do. With God’s help, they...
