All the Things

/ stephanienicole / Leave a comment

Time marches on, doesn’t it? I look at the image from over a decade ago and wonder if any part of me is actually the same. 

Two more kids for a total of four.

Many losses, many more gains.

Softer around the middle, softer in my heart, but stronger in my resolve to pursue what’s most important.

The catalyst for my musings? The digital photo frame I received for Christmas stands on the shelf in the living room, scrolling through our favourite memories at five second intervals, sending thoughts and feelings and nostalgia and gratitude rushing through me when I stop long enough to notice. Every single photo has some sort of memory attached to it. I don’t know if I am emotionally prepared to witness the transformation of my family — or myself, for that matter — all day long, but it has become a source of bittersweetness, a mix of grief and joy.

All the small things.

All the big things.

All the hard things.

All the beautiful things.

It’s all grace. Change is hard, but ignoring change is even harder. I am learning to embrace the truth that my life is a tapestry of God’s faithfulness and I am so grateful for His keeping. 

Thank You Lord that You are faithful, no matter what!

Psalm 139 comes to mind:

You have searched me, Lord,
    and you know me.

You know when I sit and when I rise;
    you perceive my thoughts from afar.

You discern my going out and my lying down;
    you are familiar with all my ways.

Before a word is on my tongue
    you, Lord, know it completely.

You hem me in behind and before,
    and you lay your hand upon me.

Such knowledge is too wonderful for me,
    too lofty for me to attain.

Where can I go from your Spirit?
    Where can I flee from your presence?

If I go up to the heavens, you are there;
    if I make my bed in the depths, you are there.

If I rise on the wings of the dawn,
    if I settle on the far side of the sea,

even there your hand will guide me,
    your right hand will hold me fast.

If I say, “Surely the darkness will hide me
    and the light become night around me,”

even the darkness will not be dark to you;
    the night will shine like the day,
    for darkness is as light to you.

For you created my inmost being;
    you knit me together in my mother’s womb.

I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made;
    your works are wonderful,
    I know that full well.

My frame was not hidden from you
    when I was made in the secret place,
    when I was woven together in the depths of the earth.

Your eyes saw my unformed body;
    all the days ordained for me were written in your book
    before one of them came to be.

How precious to me are your thoughts,[a] God!
    How vast is the sum of them!

Were I to count them,
    they would outnumber the grains of sand—
    when I awake, I am still with you.

If only you, God, would slay the wicked!
    Away from me, you who are bloodthirsty!

They speak of you with evil intent;
    your adversaries misuse your name.

Do I not hate those who hate you, Lord,
    and abhor those who are in rebellion against you?

I have nothing but hatred for them;
    I count them my enemies.

Search me, God, and know my heart;
    test me and know my anxious thoughts.

See if there is any offensive way in me,
    and lead me in the way everlasting.

Image: mine, no AI

Slowing Down

/ stephanienicole / Leave a comment

One is done, another has begun…

Spring is slowly giving way to summer around these parts! Rain has brought forth life in the neighbourhood, with colours popping everywhere. Recently-sown veggies are peeking up through the soil and the front planter is looking fine! The flowers we chose somehow survived the very rocky transition from happy greenhouse offerings to dishevelled transplants, and appear to be recovering well. What a relief!

Last week as I was kneeling in front of the rose bushes, pulling up as much quack grass as I could without shredding my forearms in the thorns, I kept thinking about how much I re-learn every single year from the simple act of gardening and maintaining a few plants here and there. The hard work of removing the things that choke out the growth, the time it takes to pay attention and provide what is needed for flourishing — these are the things I must slow down for. I can’t expect much if I don’t invest.

And yet, even when I do, there are no guarantees. Whether I like it or not, critters and weather and other unforeseen things have a hand in how the garden grows. Somehow, I think that if I just work hard and do the right things, I’ll have a wonderful, bountiful harvest! The truth is, there’s an element of letting go even in gardening, with a sense of trust that we will make the best of the things that come our way and respond accordingly to the ups and downs of the season.

So much in there, really. I’m praying that it won’t be lost on me — that I’ll truly heed the lessons and learn from the Master Gardener as I walk along this season I’m in.

Matthew 13:18-23 (NIV) — 

“Listen then to what the parable of the sower means: When anyone hears the message about the kingdom and does not understand it, the evil one comes and snatches away what was sown in their heart. This is the seed sown along the path. The seed falling on rocky ground refers to someone who hears the word and at once receives it with joy. But since they have no root, they last only a short time. When trouble or persecution comes because of the word, they quickly fall away. The seed falling among the thorns refers to someone who hears the word, but the worries of this life and the deceitfulness of wealth choke the word, making it unfruitful. But the seed falling on good soil refers to someone who hears the word and understands it. This is the one who produces a crop, yielding a hundred, sixty or thirty times what was sown.”

Image: mine

And On It Goes…

/ stephanienicole / 2 Comments

Switch the laundry load.

Get that workout in. 

Connect with my spouse.

Work checklist?

Church ministry plans.

Dinner?

Add milk and small white trash bags to the shopping list.

Kids school to-dos.

Did I connect with each kid in a meaningful way yet today?

And on it goes…

I have a running to-do list in my mind. It’s dynamic, the order of items constantly shifting to meet the immediate needs that arise from moment to moment, but it’s always there. Sometimes, when all current pressing matters have been taken care of and no unforeseen needs have arisen, I have time to mull over some of the bigger items that have fallen to the bottom.

Am I making the most of this season of family life?

What will happen in the future?

How can I be better prepared for unexpected life challenges and changes?

Am I running out of time?

Some questions don’t have clear answers right now, uncertainties that we all live with in some form or another. Your list may be slightly different than mine, but I’ll bet you have one. Sometimes these uncertainties become more clear, and not necessarily in a good way.

I came across a quote recently that pulled me right back down to earth.

“The list of my uncertainties is long

But longer still is the list of your provisions.”

-Sandra McCracken and Douglas McKelvey (Every Moment Holy: The Work of the People)

There are so many things we can’t predict, and so many things that compete for our time and energy. It’s a good reminder that even though we can’t see the whole picture, we can look back at all the ways the Lord has carried us through in the past, and be confident that He’s got us in His hands today.

Can any one of you by worrying add a single hour to your life?…But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own. (Matthew 6:27, 33-34)

Image: mine

Faithful

/ stephanienicole / Leave a comment

I love it when things are going as planned! Isn’t it just the best? Smooth sailing feels amazing! The sun is shining, the birds are singing and all is right with the world.

Until it’s not. 

So often, I’ve got a bee in my bonnet, so to speak. A laundry list of things that aren’t quite going according to my plan, or at least what I had hoped for by now. Some are rather small annoyances that upset my normal and take time and energy away from what I perceive to be more deserving things. Others are unimaginably difficult to solve, or to trust that they will ever change. 

Is God really at work in those places too?

More often than I care to admit, worry and fear begin to creep up on me and my mind is filled with all the ways that I would work each situation out. And then something happens that reminds me that I have no power to roll out my plans, and that I truly am at the mercy of the Lord, the only One who is worthy of my full trust. He will never fail! He sees what I don’t and holds together what I can’t.

It’s a long, hard lesson of letting go and trusting the Lord, a lesson I seem to be taking a lifetime to learn. I may not be able to predict the outcome of all the things that are weighing on me, but I know that the God of the Ages, the One who always keeps His promises, is faithful. From the beginning of time, His plan of redemption has been unfolding throughout history. 

The Apostle Paul shared what is believed to be the first Christian creed in 1 Corinthians 15 — 

“For what I received I passed on to you as of first importance: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures…” 1 Corinthians 15:3-4 (NIV)

Why do we trust that God is at work, even now? Why do we have hope for transformation, a spark of life in places that otherwise seem cold and dark? 

Because of Jesus!

We have a God who came near, the Word made flesh who dwelt among us. He is Emmanuel, God With Us; the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world. We have seen His glory, the glory of the One and Only, full of grace and truth (John 1), the Messiah who fulfills the promise of salvation held onto for generations!

It may not be a quick answer to prayer, but rest assured that God is at work in those unexpected places, and He is faithful!

Let these words echo in our hearts this Easter weekend:

The Lord is good, and His love endures forever, and His faithfulness continues to all generations (Psalm 100:5).

Image: mine

Not Quite There

/ stephanienicole / Leave a comment

What a month! Winter returned with a fury, and although the decorations in the dollar store are trying to convince us that it’s spring, we are not quite there.

This is the time of the year where “Beauty in every season” is really tested. I’m actively looking for those lovely things amid the freeze-thaw cycle — the trickle of the melt, the hint of green peeking up through the iris patch, and the calls of the migrating bird-folk as they return to their seasonal home. The kids have a different list. Theirs includes perfect snowman snow, the feel of smashing through thin ice on puddles, and days you can actually jump on the trampoline in socks.

We can agree on one thing, though. More daylight in the evening!

This is the time of the year when I need a good dose of perseverance! Not the kind I just muster up myself, but the kind that comes from being grounded in the Word of God, filled with the Spirit and prepared for the things I’m facing with His love, peace and strength.

1 Peter 1:3-9 (NIV)

“Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! In his great mercy he has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, and into an inheritance that can never perish, spoil or fade. This inheritance is kept in heaven for you, who through faith are shielded by God’s power until the coming of the salvation that is ready to be revealed in the last time. 

In all this you greatly rejoice, though now for a little while you may have had to suffer grief in all kinds of trials. These have come so that the proven genuineness of your faith—of greater worth than gold, which perishes even though refined by fire—may result in praise, glory and honour when Jesus Christ is revealed. Though you have not seen him, you love him; and even though you do not see him now, you believe in him and are filled with an inexpressible and glorious joy, for you are receiving the end result of your faith, the salvation of your souls.“

A prayer for us this week:

May the Lord increase our capacity for His overflowing love.

May we experience a deepening of His peace in the places that feel simply overwhelming.

May the glorious and inexpressible joy of the Lord be our strength!

Image: Stocksnap

True Hope

/ stephanienicole / Leave a comment

An unexpected warm-up in late January has me thinking about hope this week.

G.K. Chesterton once wrote,

“Hope is the power of being cheerful in circumstances which we know to be desperate. It is true that there is a state of hope which belongs to bright prospects and the morning; but that is not the virtue of hope. The virtue of hope exists only in earthquake and eclipse…

For practical purposes it is at the hopeless moment that we require the hopeful man, and the virtue either does not exist at all, or begins to exist at that moment. Exactly at the instant when hope ceases to be reasonable it begins to be useful.”

The virtue of hope exists only in earthquake and eclipse…

Exactly at the instant when hope ceases to be reasonable it begins to be useful…

I turn these phrases over in my mind a few times, but I keep going back to “… the state of hope which belongs to bright prospects and the morning…”. This is the kind I can really get behind! I love starting out with a good cup of coffee, a bright sunrise before me, a fresh new day ahead with no mistakes in it (yet).

It’s much more difficult to cultivate the virtue of hope, the true treasure, that goes beyond our happy blessings and opportunities. The kind that exists only in earthquake and eclipse, the kind we’d consider unreasonable. We cannot thrive without it. In fact, we will not survive without it.

The daily headlines call to us, breaking our hearts at every turn, goading us into a constant state of outrage.

Our own personal crises, though they may be small by comparison to what others are facing, tempt us to fall head-first into an abyss of fear.

Access to more information than we can ever make sense of is the siren song to one of humanity’s weaknesses: mistaking knowledge for wisdom. The oldest lie.

Where are you desperate today? What is your earthquake and eclipse? Is the virtue of hope being born in your heart?

Some have lived their worst nightmares and are forever changed, but from the ashes has come what Chesterton would deem a “… hope that ceases to be reasonable…” that has become useful. Not because they mustered it up themselves, but because it is external. It’s a hope Christians have been born into through Christ’s resurrection (1 Peter 1), a hope that cannot be taken away no matter what we face.

Thanks be to God that the virtue of hope is a true gift from Him!

“But we have this treasure in jars of clay to show that his all-surpassing power is from God and not from us. We are hard pressed on every side, but not crushed; perplexed, but not in despair; persecuted, but not abandoned; struck down, but not destroyed…

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. So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen, since what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal.” (2 Corinthians 4:7-9, 16-18 NIV)

Image: Stocksnap

What We Need Now

/ stephanienicole / Leave a comment

There are gaps between how things are and how I wish they could be in some areas of my life, and somehow the holidays highlight those gaps in ways I don’t notice at other times of the year. Today more than ever, I need to hear a simple phrase I’ve heard many times before:

May the peace of the Lord be with you.

It’s what our hearts desire most at times, isn’t it? Something eternal and inexhaustible to fill and sustain us in every area of our lives, through all the joys and especially the sorrows. Looking back on the past year, these seven words matter. Almost everyone I know has been carrying heavy things through the holidays, with grief and loss of one form or another. We all need the peace of the Lord in the deepest parts of our hearts!

An old hymn from my childhood country church came to mind this morning — 

The whole world was lost in the darkness of sin

The light of the world is Jesus

Like sunshine at noonday His glory shone in

The light of the world is Jesus.

Come to the light, ’tis shining for thee

Sweetly the light has dawned upon me

Once I was blind but now I can see

The light of the world is Jesus.

-Philip Paul Bliss

How else do you walk through the longest, darkest days but to look up at the Light of the World with full confidence that He is the only One who can work in our hearts to bring us the peace we long for? Come to the Light – discover the peace of the Lord for each moment of 2026.

“So then, just as you received Christ Jesus as Lord, continue to live your lives in him, rooted and built up in him, strengthened in the faith as you were taught, and overflowing with thankfulness.” (Colossians 2:6-7)

May the peace of the Lord be with you this year!

Image: Stocksnap

Scattering Shadows

/ stephanienicole / Leave a comment

“The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.” John 1:5.

Candlelight flickers on the ceiling, illuminating the darkness with its warmth, scattering shadows across the room. It’s peaceful and inviting, just what I need after a very full day. Sinking into the couch, I watch the light dancing across the ceiling and marvel at such a simple beauty bringing me so much solace. An unexpected gift from the Lord, I conclude with a thankful sigh.

A few days later, my phone lights up with an early evening text. Go outside, it says, with an attached photo of a rare and unexpected moment of brilliance. I step out the back door into the chilly air. Thanks to all the city lights, it’s hard to see with the naked eye but as I raise my phone camera above the dark horizon, an incredible sight appears! Northern lights dance across the sky. In all my days I’ve never seen them in that colour! Growing up on the farm, we’d set out our lawn chairs in the middle of the yard and watch a breathtaking show in shades of green and blue, but rarely pinks and yellows. Another gift, Lord!

Some recent mornings have dawned uneventfully, but a few of these late sunrises have been layered with blush, coral, lavender and periwinkle fading into the grey morning sky. I can’t help myself! I step out our busy morning routine and snap a photo or two, but they never really do it justice. Thank you Lord for Your beauty and goodness! 

This week has brought a thick blanket of snow, fresh and clean, and a short blast of true, blue winter cold is now upon us for a couple of days, ushering in the Advent season with its great anticipation of the best celebration of the year. From brown and colourless to brilliant white – a picture of a heart transformed. Come, Lord Jesus, my heart cries. We need You so deeply!

November’s gifts of light have blessed me beyond measure! They’ve been a call to slow down and sit at the feet of Jesus, resting in His presence, even just for a moment. I’ve been living a busy, distracted life, and yet, the Lord is using these ordinary moments to remind me of His goodness and grace.

My prayer in these busy years has often been, Lord, let me be interruptible. Help me to see the things that are truly important for this moment, for this day.

An impromptu board game, a necessary late night heart-to-heart, a releasing of my own plans to make room for the beautiful things right in front of me — I am finding myself increasingly dependent on the Lord for wisdom in the ordinary moments of life. And I am finding that He is faithful to provide!

What a beautiful gift of a moment to breathe before we jump into all things jolly! My prayer in this season is from Colossians 3:15-17 — 

Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, since as members of one body you were called to peace. And be thankful. Let the message of Christ dwell among you richly as you teach and admonish one another with all wisdom through psalms, hymns, and songs from the Spirit, singing to God with gratitude in your hearts. And whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.

Such important truth to preach to our hearts words as we engage the next few weeks of preparations for our Christmas celebrations. Advent has become a beloved part of our holiday season, not because we need more traditions, but because it reminds us that of the grand story of history unfolding before us. We can step off the frantic merry-go-round of rushing around trying to accomplish our checklist in time for our perfect holiday and refocus our minds and hearts on the King of Kings who is faithful to do what He has promised. He has been patiently unfolding His plan since the dawn of time, and the vastness of this truth brings a deep sense of awe and amazement that we are included in it!

“Long lay the world in sin and error pining,
till He appeared and the soul felt its worth.
A thrill of hope, the weary world rejoices,
for yonder breaks a new and glorious morn!

Fall on your knees! O hear the angel voices!
O night divine! O night when Christ was born!
O night divine! O night, O night divine”

These words were penned by an avowed atheist Placide Cappeau in the mid-1800s at the request of his local parish priest. It was the first song ever played over the newly invented airwaves in 1906, with a soaring melody on an old violin, to the amazement of ship’s radio operators travelling across the sea. We sing melodies from centuries ago that bring tears to our eyes even today because they hold unchanging truth — we need Jesus!

As November becomes December, with lengthening shadows illuminated by the glow of a candle, and we are tempted to get distracted and lose the plot, disheartened by the heaviness around us, we are determined to pause to remember that the Light of the World will return to overcome the darkness forever. May our ordinary moments, our “interruptions”, the gifts of His grace, the glimmer of His light in our lives, scatter our own shadows and give us the true hope our hearts so desperately need.

For to us a child is born,
to us a son is given,
    and the government will be on his shoulders.
And he will be called
    Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God,
    Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.
Of the greatness of his government and peace
    there will be no end.
He will reign on David’s throne
    and over his kingdom,
establishing and upholding it
    with justice and righteousness
    from that time on and forever.
The zeal of the Lord Almighty
    will accomplish this.

Isaiah 9:6-7 (NIV)

Image: Unsplash

Gifts of Grace

/ stephanienicole / Leave a comment

Late October mornings are full of brilliant calls to worship!

Stars twinkle boldly in the pitch darkness, slowly fading away as the sky brightens into fire and cotton-candy colouring, with layers of coral and turquoise chasing out the violet blue of the western sky. 

In the middle of our ordinary lives, the canvas of sunrise unfolds before our very eyes as an extraordinary display of the glory and goodness of the Lord, an invitation to fix our minds on things above, not on earthly things.

And there are no shortage of earthly things that tend to darken our hearts.

Hot debates, inflammatory headlines, never-ending news cycles, sensationalized social media feeds.

An explosive text message, a concerning symptom or a season of deep grief.

Financial stress coupled with future uncertainty.

Can we hear the call of Christ amid all of these things?

“Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.” (Matthew 11:28-30 NIV)

The gift of a breathtaking sunrise is just one of many glimmers of grace in the middle of the mess. Simple moments like these remind us that God is at work in ways we don’t always see. Life can be astoundingly difficult at times, but when these heavy things press in and threaten to crush us, we will hear the call of Jesus and rest in Him!

Thank you Lord for Your gifts of grace. May they not be lost on us! Give us eyes to catch glimpses of Your glory each day!

I pray that out of his glorious riches he may strengthen you with power through his Spirit in your inner being, so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith. And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, may have power, together with all the Lord’s holy people, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, and to know this love that surpasses knowledge—that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God. (Ephesians 3:16-19 NIV)

Image: Mine

A Necessary Pause

/ stephanienicole / Leave a comment

In a word: brilliant.

September rarely disappoints in this part of the world! It has some of our best weather, our best colours, our best wildlife… what a gift! In the middle of the whirlwind of things to be done, afternoons are warm, roads are snow-free, and the golden kisses of autumn are everywhere.

It’s a much slower transition this year, though. No frost yet! Most years, we have a mid-month freeze up that sends the green on its way. Thanks to stretch of warmth, many bushes and trees are still holding on to their summer wardrobe. I suspect, though, over the next two or three weeks we’ll really see the autumn glow-up! And it will be glorious.

Just in time for Thanksgiving season at our house. Since the kids were little, we’ve been intentional about how we spend the weeks leading up to our Thanksgiving celebrations. Back then, it was easy. Life was a bit slower, kids jumped on the bandwagon and it didn’t take much to make it fun.

These days, though, with older kids and teenagers, it’s a different ball game. It’s no surprise that construction paper handprint leaves don’t cut it anymore, but our family gratitude journal has become an anticipated part of our routine. When I considered giving it a rest for a while, the loud protests revealed that it really has become a meaningful weekly tradition. It may not look the same as the handprint tree, but the intention remains: pause and take the time to remember the goodness of the Lord in our lives.

Holiday seasons rarely come at a convenient time. Life has a way of moving forward in ways we’re not ready for, and pressing pause on a full schedule with everyone’s different hopes and dreams for their intersecting lives can be a real struggle at times. Add relational tensions, unexpected illness and other dramatic life interruptions, and it can become a tough lesson in managing disappointment rather quickly. The costs can be high, and they’re not only financial.

Can we really afford to pause for Thanksgiving?

Lately I’ve been asking myself, “Can we really afford NOT to?” What an opportunity to rest in the Lord and see Him show up in places that feel impossibly difficult. As I wrestle with what it means for us this year, I keep thinking of a few thoughts from the final chapter of the book of Philippians:

I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want. I can do all this through him who gives me strength. (Phil. 4:12-13)

And especially the promise:

And my God will meet all your needs according to the riches of his glory in Christ Jesus. To our God and Father be glory for ever and ever. Amen. (v.19-20)

Yes Lord! We’re trusting that You know our needs — and You will meet us in those places we need You most.

Image: mine