Arise Blog

Dwelling places: Holding contradictions
Reflection Melanie Nixon Reflection Melanie Nixon

Dwelling places: Holding contradictions

Praying in the midst of…

Storm and calm. Peace and chaos. Fear and courage.

Have you ever felt or experienced trying to pray but your thoughts and prayers are met with contrasts, distractions, or unclear direction?

We can probably all say yes to this feeling, and experience, and throw our hands up, maybe even quit. So how do we hold these in prayer? From my own experience, there is a tension to have to choose one or the other. Do we have to choose?…

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Surprise Blessings
Resonating Resources Melanie Nixon Resonating Resources Melanie Nixon

Surprise Blessings

Living in a home with books all around (even flooding the closest), you often find treasures. Words that speak from pages right when you needed an escape into a novel, or a poem widening your perspective, or soft gentle…

These I call surprise blessings!

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Beauty and the Brain
Resting Melanie Nixon Resting Melanie Nixon

Beauty and the Brain

When two kinds of beautiful come together: an aha moment and a time for sharing what’s merging for this month’s Resting practice.

Beauty and the Brain

Ever since reading The Soul of Desire: Discovering the Neuroscience of Longing, Beauty, and Community by Curt Thompson, MD, his insights keep stirring, particularly in conversations about beauty. He makes connections on how the brain works with…

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From the garden: Restoration pt. 2
Devotional Melanie Nixon Devotional Melanie Nixon

From the garden: Restoration pt. 2

Daily Life Rhythms

Days later the word “restoration” still remains, a mulling with, and longing to trust there’s work going on in the heart. 

A steady prayer has been arising asking God, “How will You continue the restoration of our minds, hearts, bodies–our souls?” Many people ask and we often share conversations “dialogue” of honest and open questioning about …

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