Author Archives: joyspringcounseling

Often I’ve heard those who’ve had a close encounter with death speak reflectively about what they have learned from the experience. They may have heard a very frightening prognosis for a medical condition and then recovered against the odds. Or they had a near-fatal car accident, or almost drowned, or were gravely injured in war,Continue reading “Saved for a Purpose”

In thirty years of counseling in various places and contexts, I never personally experienced the suicide of a client. Until now. Strange that two weeks after seeing my last client and stepping into the new flow of retirement, I learned of the suicide of a client I had been seeing right up to the timeContinue reading “Suicide: What Scripture Says and Does Not Say”

Recently a friend stayed with me while in town for a job interview. On her way back from the interview, her car broke down and she had it towed to a garage. We didn’t know that day that she would wind up stranded and staying as our house guest for an entire week. That’s howContinue reading “Accidental Rest”

The title for this blog is an oxymoron, a contradiction within itself. It’s a riddle to be solved. This is not my own creation but is a figure of speech lifted directly from the Scriptures. When I ran across it in my reading, I wondered if Scripture itself could help me make sense of seeingContinue reading “Seeing the Invisible”

As I was doing my devotional reading in 2 Corinthians and asking for new light this week, the thought that emerged was that as believers we have a duty to joy. We are to bring joyful praises to God. We are to experience joy that strengthens us in our walk with him. And we areContinue reading “Duty to Joy”

(I’m sharing this from a post from way back in 2018, and it came to mind as I still experience this today–God’s tender love and patience with me as I’m still holding on to the things he wants me to eventually surrender…) Last week was trying for me, at work and at home. Nothing life-threateningContinue reading “Holding on and Letting Go”

As you know if you’ve been reading my writing for any period of time, I am drawn to metaphor in a big way. This is how the Holy Spirit often communicates deep things to me, in figurative, metaphoric terms. Biblical metaphors catch my attention constantly. When I share what I’m seeing, those metaphors become partContinue reading “Doors to Open or Shut”

Originally posted on Ruth E. Stitt:
If you are a Star Wars fan, you’ll recognize this title as part of Yoda’s famous proverb: “Do. Or do not. There is no try.” I’m borrowing this from Yoda and applying it to how Scripture comes to life when we are faced with the hard things. One of…

I wasn’t planning to write about loneliness this week. But as I was preparing to lead a couple of recovery groups, the Lord led me to it, and I became curious about how Scripture comes to life on the topic of loneliness as an aspect of human suffering. Scripture attests to–and life demonstrates in myriadContinue reading “Loneliness and Belonging”

Originally posted on Ruth E. Stitt:
It seems like eons ago when I was preparing to be a professional jazz guitarist and vocalist. I was in college studying jazz, and it was the only music on my turntable. ?I practiced jazz tunes for hours every day. I sought out gigs of my own and live…