Last night I made Thai basil ground pork and rice for supper. Only the kitchen counter was still cluttered with dishes from breakfast and lunch, and instead of clearing a spot for my cutting board, measuring cups, and other assorted utensils and ingredients, I worked around and among everything that was already there. For some reason, I thought that was simpler and … [Read more...] about Simplify
April Yamasaki
April Yamasaki currently serves as resident author with Valley CrossWay Church, editor of Rejoice! daily devotional magazine, a spiritual formation mentor with Anabaptist Mennonite Biblical Seminary, and often speaks in churches and other settings. Her latest book is Hope Beyond Our Sorrows: Learning to Live with Life-Changing Loss. Learn more at AprilYamasaki.com, WhenYouWorkfortheChurch.com, and Writing as a Spiritual Journey on Substack.
While it was still dark
A couple of weeks ago, my laptop suddenly turned itself off and wouldn’t turn back on. I’m not sure what happened since I had stepped away for a moment. But I had noticed the fan seemed to be running more than usual, and when I returned to my desk, I found my laptop had failed. It wasn’t just sleeping, since it wouldn’t wake up. It wasn’t out of power, since it was plugged … [Read more...] about While it was still dark
God’s gifts of kindness and generosity
Last month I was surprised to receive this email from a regular reader: “I wanted to let you know I mailed you a little package – I hope you like it! You have been exceptionally kind and inspirational to me and have truly helped me. For all of that, I am filled with gratitude. Thank you, and God bless you.” Wow! We had connected through my website, had emailed back and … [Read more...] about God’s gifts of kindness and generosity
God with us in our grieving
When my husband died suddenly of cancer-related complications last year, I felt I could hardly breathe, let alone write. Even in the last number of weeks, when I was invited to write this article on grief, I wasn’t sure I could or even wanted to. How could I take such a huge and painful experience, and set it down in words? What encouragement could I offer others who may be … [Read more...] about God with us in our grieving