by Jessica Bolyard | Mar 19, 2015 | Faith
Over the past couple of weeks, I’ve been asking God to bring to mind the things that make up the story of my journey with Him. Because truthfully, things seem monumental and unforgettable at the time, but before long the things we never wanted to forget have...
by Jessica Bolyard | Mar 18, 2015 | Faith, Fellowship
The human memory is a funny thing. We can’t remember where we put our keys or the name of that lady who sits in the next row at church every week, but random moments from our past are burned into our memory banks and never leave. Those memories might be...
by Jessica Bolyard | Mar 3, 2015 | Faith, Fellowship
Over the past week or so, I have spent several hours sitting on the floor of my home office begging God to wreck me. As I flipped through albums and shuffled through a trinket box of receipts and notes and random papers chronicling my semester abroad in college, I...
by Jessica Bolyard | Feb 26, 2015 | Faith
I woke up late this morning, and before my eyes ever opened I felt a burning, stinging, itching pain. My face was on fire. Not literally, of course, but as soon as I flipped the bathroom light on, I saw – through swollen eyes – that I had red splotchiness...
by Jessica Bolyard | Feb 25, 2015 | Faith
During my junior year of college, in the spring of 2002, I spent a semester studying in Spain. It was a practical choice for someone with an international studies/cultural studies/Spanish major. It made sense for someone who wanted to one day work for an international...
by Jessica Bolyard | Feb 19, 2015 | Faith
I spent some time this morning reflecting on the 21. The 21 Egyptian Christians martyred for their insistent faith in Christ. The 21 led in a line down a middle-eastern beach, wearing orange jumpsuits and accompanied by intimidating men in black. There has been a lot...
by Jessica Bolyard | Feb 18, 2015 | Faith
Today is Ash Wednesday. It’s Lent already, and I don’t have a plan. Some of you are appalled reading that. Some of you have known for awhile what you were going to do (or not do) during Lent. God spoke to you – you heard His voice – and now...
by Jessica Bolyard | Feb 6, 2015 | Faith, Fellowship
It was beautiful, really, once I really looked at what I was seeing. I had stopped at a crosswalk to let an older couple cross the street. Arms linked, steps in sync, both moving slowly toward the restaurant. Neither walked effortlessly, and admittedly, their unsteady...
by Jessica Bolyard | Jan 27, 2015 | Faith
A couple of months ago, at around 8:00 in the morning, I grabbed my phone and hastily updated my Facebook status. It was a simple status – a short phrase, repeated three times. “I will not scream. I will not scream. I will not scream.” It had already...
by Jessica Bolyard | Jan 23, 2015 | Faith
This past New Year’s Eve I found myself, once again, incredulously staring a new year in the face. My news feed was inundated with year-end reviews and predictions for the new year. Friends had selected (and found time to write about!) their “words of the...
