Kathy Weckwerth

Everyday Encouragement

In the Grove

Six Soul Cleaning Steps

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clean-1445150Soul Cleaning is a much-needed attempt to clear out your heart and mind and get you in a better place to walk away refreshed and restored.

In scripture, we will often read the cries of a distressed heart from King David.  After David has been in sin, he cries out to God and says … time for a soul cleaning … Psalm 26:2, “Test me, Lord, and try me, examine my heart and mind.”  He’s planning on blowing the cobwebs off of his dusty soul.

Here are some steps to spiritually take this spring, to clean out those closets and cobwebs of your heart and soul.

  1. Find a quiet, restful place and begin to think and journal about the weeks or month.
  1. Ask the Holy Spirit to convict you and show you where you have unresolved issues and sin.
  1. Spend some time contemplating how you got to that place of sin and determine how you can avoid revisiting this same issue again.
  1. Confess your sin before God and mentally imagine a big huge Mr. Clean eraser removing everything you’re confessing.
  1. Walk away with a renewed sense of freedom and restoration from sin.
  1. Commit to God that you will begin the steps to daily confess and keep your heart, mind, and spirit forgiven by God’s grace and your mind will remain de-cluttered.

daisy-in-the-sun-1397229[callout]When you make time for self reflection and confession, you will continually keep your heart and mind free, de-cluttered, and ready to live your best life![/callout]

I Have a Friend Named Merci

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I Have a Friend Named Merci

Kathy A. Weckwerth

Matthew 5:7, “Blessed are the meek, for they shall be shown mercy.”

For years I thought I understood this verse.  That is, until I studied the beatitudes and wrote my own Bible study about it.  I thought mercy was simply  being kind to others.  But as I studied it, I found out that the Greek word “eleemon” means the same thing as the English word “merciful” used in Matthew 5:7, “showing compassion to somebody.”

Compassion travels to a deeper level.  Compassion means to get inside someone else’s world.  It means to truly listen and put yourself in their skin … seeing what they see, hearing what they hear, and understanding what’s happening to them at the core of their being.  Do we really show others mercy anymore?

And yet, I think about what happened to me this past fall. 

Invited by my good friend to travel out west to a women’s conference, I enjoyed the excitement of the journey, the beauty of the snow-capped mountains, the change of scenery, but the conference produced challenges for me … a stripping of cell phones, makeup, jewelry and time pieces, in order to escape this busy world.   And if that wasn’t uncomfortable enough,  then a vow of silence was demanded,to provide an opportunity for the Holy Spirit to talk to you.

IMGP1841“Chatty Kathy” was my nickname with my daddy when I was little. Along with that, I served for over 25 years watching the clock during services, serving as a worship director.  And I am a true extrovert.  This would be painful, to say the least.

Each attendee was shocked with the vow of silence.  After all, we are women!  And yet we realized something, we could still talk.  How?  Through our facial expressions.  Through our gestures.  Through our EYES.

And that’s when I met her.  Merci.

A tall, kind, confident, beautiful woman (she didn’t need make up) from Michigan walked past me.  I remembered her from when I first arrived at the event and we were still allowed to converse.

Each time I walked past Merci, we would speak in those seconds of time.  Not through words, but a glance, a smile, a roll of the eyes, and eventually a whisper here and there.  Merci let me know that in my angst to not know what time it was, there was a spot on the thermostat with the time.  I let her know in those few seconds … I was going crazy.

When the weekend was at its end, we were allowed to stroll outside and quietly chat.  Merci and I walked amidst the chilly day, sun shining on our backs, wind blowing across our faces, and we downloaded life.  Quickly, hitting the facts of who we were and where we came from, something happened within those moments.  Knowing once we returned indoors there would be no more conversation, we got to the depths of life … hers and mine … very quickly.

I listened.  She listened.  We prayed.

I heard her heart all the way to the depths of her soul.  I saw her needs before God.  I listened, really listened.

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Photo courtesy of Alexis Iskierka

And in those moments of mountains and breezes, confessions and prayers, I understood Merci.  I understood mercy.

Getting past the makeup, bobbles, Ralph Lauren sweaters, Movado watches, and superfluous chitchat, all the way down to the roots of who we are, was the truth about MERCY.

[callout]This is mercy.  This is the kind of mercy that Jesus is referring to in Matthew 5, the kind of mercy that crawls inside the skin of another and experiences her feelings, her hurt and pain, and sees from that hurting person’s perspective.  It is an attitude that puts on a deep sense of compassion for those around us. [/callout]

I’m calling out to each one of us today.  Are we listening?  Are we getting past the surface.  Are we really hearing other people?

I have a friend called Merci.  She reminded me the true meaning of Mercy.

For more information ab

The Church Doors

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IMG_1928By Kathy A. Weckwerth -As I hastily prepared a toasted english muffin, slathering peanut butter across it and grabbing my cup of coffee, I headed out into the morning wind to make it across the yard to my Wednesday morning Bible study.

The little church looked so peaceful as it rested in the grove.  High above the towering trees stands the steeple and peering out through the winter winds whipping the snow flakes, I took a deep breath in and thanked God once again for his kindness.  This will be the fourth Christmas that Farmer Dean and I will celebrate the birth of our Savior within these walls.

As I pulled my keys out of my pocket, I realized, I had the wrong keys.  No worries, I’d just get them from my car.  But alas, they were nowhere to be found.  With 30 minutes to go until everyone arrived, I began to panic.  And so I did what I do so often, I dialed up the Farmer.

“Deano, do you have my keys?”  I questioned.

“Nope, you do.”  he  answered.

“What!  Where?”  I began to panic.

“Probably locked inside the church.”  he replied.

Ah, yes.  That was it.  You see on Monday I entertained at the little church, a lovely group of women from the neighboring town of Starbuck so they could celebrate their Christmas party.  I was so busy cleaning up and locking up … I forgot to grab the old keys.

I quickly called one of my friends and she picked up the keys on her way out to study.  But in the midst of the wind blowing, and the icy snow pelting our windows, each one of us sat in our warm cars waiting and watching for the key to get us inside.

I smiled and said to God, “You have an interesting sense of humor.”  You see, while we waited, and wait we did, there was nothing we could do.  We just sat.  And waited.  And waited.  But in those moments between our car, the snow, the quietness, the peacefulness, I realized something.  In a sense, this was what it must have been like for Mary and Joseph.

They were traveling.  They were approaching doors that were closed on them.  And they were waiting.  Waiting on doors to open.  Waiting for God to meet them.  Waiting for arms to be wide open.  They were welcomed not into a holy palace filled with bright shiny gold, but instead, they were welcomed into a dark, safe place next to the animals.

The doors were opened on that day of Christ’s birth and new life was given, hope was delivered, and prophecy fulfilled.

As I pondered all of this, I looked up to see my Bible study friend handing me the key.  I laughed and headed straight for the double doors that looked warm and inviting as they held the beautiful rustic Christmas wreaths.

[callout]Christmas is a time to reflect on the presence of God.  Christmas is a time to reflect on the presents of God~ His Son, forgiveness, open arms, and the key to salvation. [/callout]

Merry Christmas to you and yours,

Kathy and Farmer Dean

That Christmas Feeling

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P1040942That Christmas Feeling, By Kathy A. Weckwerth

It’s that time of year when people are looking for the inevitable Christmas trappings that help them to feel like they are holding onto special Christmas feelings and emotions … the same ones they experienced as a child.

As I baked Christmas sugar cookies for the get-together at our little church in the grove, I was excited for the season of baking.  And then I overbrowned a pan and ran out of blue sprinkles for the snowmen.  I couldn’t find that feeling in baking.

Next, I put my Carpenter’s Christmas CD on, while Jenessa and I decorated the tree.  With my granddaughter Cordelia taking all of the ornaments out and carrying them around, pulling them apart and anxiously trying to hang them up herself.   I couldn’t find that feeling in decorating.

Farmer Dean raced outside to the church to set up the nativity set and deck the trees with lights and holly.  It was beautiful.  The scene was well lit, the church looked sweet, but I couldn’t find that feeling in seeing the outside lights.

While I did the dishes, I turned on the tv set in time to see “It’s a Wonderful Life” airing.  I washed pots and pans while listening to George Bailey moping about and wishing he never existed.  By the time I got to Mr. Potter being mean and keeping the bank’s funds, I felt a sinking feeling.  I couldn’t find that feeling in Christmas specials.

On Monday, I traveled south to Iowa.  What was I thinking!  I got caught in a blizzard just inside the Iowa border.  As I clutched the steering wheel, I listened to every quiet piano playing Christmas carol known to man … along with a few tunes from The Partridge Family, The Grinch, and She Daisy, but in the music, I couldn’t find that feeling in Christmas CDs.

As I arrived in my hometown, I pulled in the driveway, looked at the town’s lights, made a walk down memory lane by visiting with old friends and seeing old sites, but nothing could give me that feeling … you know the one … that sense that all is right with the world and Christmas has arrived without any efforts of your own.

On my way home, I made several stops at stores while I picked up little things for the family and watched the hustle and bustle of people picking out Christmas trees, purchasing turkeys, and buying Christmas cards.  Nothing did it for me.  Nothing.  I could not, I would not create the feeling that I embraced as a child.

Until something happened.  On Friday night, I pulled in my own driveway and made plans for getting the church set for the Christmas carol and cookie night on Saturday.  When Saturday night arrived at the little church, there was excitement in the air as I greeted each and every visitor through the church doors.

I had made Christmas punch and observed the frothy red sherbet floating on top of the bowl. A variety of cookies were displayed on big trays, while people filed in chatting, laughing, and hugging one another.  With the small group of about 30, I began to welcome them, commenting on cookie plates, Christmas sweaters, as they commented on the little church and how dressed up it was for Christmas.

I sat down at the piano and started the night off with a solo.  The words began to melt like winter snow on a warm spring day … right through my soul.  “I need a silent night, a holy night, to hear an angel voice through the chaos and the noise.”  And then I prayed.

But what happened, you’re asking!  I looked out and I listened.  I just stopped and listened to the voices singing song after song … carol after carol.  “Hark the herald angels sing, glory to the newborn King, ” and ” It came upon a midnight clear that glorious song of old …” and there it was.  Voices intermingled with good will, smiles, camaraderie,  and with the ending of each song, my granddaughter stood up, clapped and yelled “yeah!”

That feeling had arrived!  As many of my congregation shared Christmas memories, the feelings deepened as I allowed myself to remember the many good things of years gone by and all was well.  Not just in my heart and mind … but that Christmas spirit flooded my soul.

[callout]Look for it.  You’ll find it.  Maybe not on tv, or in the mall … perhaps not in your car or in your kitchen … but you will find the Christmas spirit when you seek the Spirit Himself. [/callout]

Peace on earth … goodwill towards men.