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The In-Between

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2 minutes reading time (443 words)
I-miss-you-sad-girl-seat-alone-and-waiting-someone The In-Between

Distressing as these in-between times of the season may be, they can also be nourishing for the soul.

—Macrina Wiederkehr

Walking in the woods lately I've begun to spot signs of this in-between place. Many trees have long lost their coat of many colors and stand naked against a gray sky and chilly wind. It looks like winter. But it isn't quite yet. Although there is snow on the ground and the temperatures are falling, we have another few weeks before winter sets in in earnest.

I can feel the seasons change as I continue to walk the woods. The air is brisker than it once was. Squirrels are fattening themselves for the months to come. And a layer of ice has formed on the nearby lake.

There are fewer bird songs in these quiet woods. The trees groan as they relinquish themselves to this in-between season.

What does this in-between season represent for you?

For many of us, experiencing an in-between place can be uncomfortable. We Americans are used to going from Point A to Point B with relative speed. We are in such a hurry. Being stuck in the in-between can be unnerving for us. How then can it be a space of nourishment for our soul as the quote above suggests?

Perhaps these in-between seasons should be viewed not with uneasiness but as a gift. Maybe we should view the in-between as a spiritual waiting room. A chance to slow. To replenish. To listen. To watch.

Advent is after all the season of waiting. Waiting and watching. A season of hope for the future.

Are you willing to wait on God so that he can begin something new in you? 

It is not what you are or what you have been that God sees with all merciful eyes, but what you desire to be.

—Cloud of Unknowing

What is it that do you most desire to be?

I long to be a woman after God's own heart. But I know that I am so very far from that woman that I long to be. Perhaps that is why I am in this place of in-between. Maybe God is shifting something in me to prepare me for what is to come.

Might God be inviting you into the in-between place to lovingly nudge you to leave behind what was, to embrace what's to come?

I am still not all I should be, but I am bringing all my energies to bear on this one thing: Forgetting the past and looking forward to what lies ahead, I strain to reach the end of the race and receive the prize for which God is calling us up to heaven because of what Christ Jesus did for us.

Philippians 3:13-14

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About the author

Julie Miller

Julie Miller

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Julie has been inspiring children, youth, and women as a speaker, teacher, silent retreat leader, author and mentor for over 30 years. She was the Director of Women's Bible Studies at Eagle Brook Church, is a certified Spiritual Director and the owner of Heart Matters Publishing Company. She is an alumnus of Bethel University and Christos Center for Spiritual Formation.As an author she has written Bible Study Curriculum and Devotionals, including her latest collaboration, Whispers of God's Grace. Julie draws on her wide range of life experiences, humor and love of God's Word and His creation for her writing. When she is not writing, you will find her absorbed in a good book, puttering in her garden or dreaming of France.Julie and her husband, Rey, live in White Bear Lake, MN and are the parents of two grown sons, Erik and Kyle.

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  • Julie

    Julie

    I’m turning 62 this year. I can hardly believe it myself. But, I’ve decided that I no longer want to live comfortably. I want to live with a spirit of adventure like I had in the past. To be unafraid of what’s new or different. I want to remain so open to the Spirit of the living God that his love compels me to go wherever he leads me.
  • LuAnn

    LuAnn

    I am passionate about people leaning into all that Jesus is. You. Me. Us. Journeying together with God. This is my greatest blessing. And now that my kiddos are out on their own, I’m learning to navigate my new normal. And I am finding there is life after little ones and teens after all!
  • Emilie

    Emilie

    I am currently finishing my degree in relational communications and plan to graduate in the spring of 2020!! I am thankful I have had time to grow, heal, appreciate a slower pace of living, and to invest more time into relationships with family, friends, and God. Through this process I am learning what I want to prioritize in my life and figuring out ways to make that happen. Most of all, I am figuring out that life is all about process, taking steps closer to where I want to be and celebrating the little victories but also accepting that there will be setbacks and disappointments along the way.
  • Sally

    Sally

    Sally Cranham is a singer and writer from the UK. She uses biblical narrative and her own experience to write deeply into the heart of the human condition. She currently works as a volunteer for SourceMN as their Arts Outreach Coordinator and has lived as a Residential Volunteer at Source’s anti-trafficking transitional annex alongside women who have come out of the life of prostitution.
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