‘Be still and know that I am God.’ Psalm 46:10, NIV Nearly three years ago, I started practising stillness on a regular basis. Inspired by Julia Baird’s luminescent book, Phosphorescence*, and the constant noise inside my own head, I set myself a goal of becoming still at least once a day. It didn’t matter if […]
Author: Steph Penny
Unsolicited Advice
In my solitary days of unwanted singledom, I received all sorts of unsolicited advice about how to unsingle myself. You know the sort: ‘You need to get out more.’ ‘Maybe you should be less picky.’ ‘Have you considered online dating?’ Some of that advice was pretty good, actually. Take the online dating, for instance. That’s […]
Happy Birthday, Book Baby!
‘I live with lupus,’ the lady said, ‘and when I saw in your author bio that you live with lupus too, I told myself I simply had to meet you!’ ‘I’m so thrilled to meet a fellow lupie!’ I laughed. Lupus is a rare condition and I often feel a bit alone and lost in […]
My Weird Testimony
‘I’ll pray for your healing,’ smiled the young woman. ‘Actually,’ I smiled back, ‘I think God has told me he’s not going to heal me.’ The woman frowned. ‘That’s not the God I know. My God would never deny me healing.’ ‘OK, let me tell you my weird testimony…’ In the not-too-distant past, I was […]
A Recovering Perfectionist Finds Joy
It’s been a difficult morning. A difficult month, actually. Nothing special, just the general busyness of work and life. Lots of appointments and medical things going on, all important, all worthwhile, but taxing. And it’s catching up with me. At times like these, I often hear the voice of the Perfectionist bellowing in my ear: […]
Beyond Yoga
Last weekend I participated in a first-time Indie Author Book Festival in Adelaide. I had so much fun talking to customers and chatting to fellow authors all day—the conversations were nearly non-stop! Lots of people stopped by my table to talk about chronic illness. One thing that came up again and again was how often […]
‘The Most Important Thing’
Due to circumstances beyond my control, I was recently forced to watch free-to-air TV. I don’t watch much free TV, having long ago joined the ranks of the stream watchers. But I was locked down with the flu from hell in a hotel room, so free TV it was. Part of my torture program included […]
Useless
Three years ago I became useless. I had acquired a cold and, along with it, problems breathing. All tests for COVID-19 etc. came back clear. It was just a cold—but I couldn’t talk for more than a few minutes without severe shortness of breath. I couldn’t walk very far. In fact, when I went to […]
Chronic Illness is Lonelifying
‘My knees are shot,’ I explained to my shamefully fit friend. ‘You need to do more squats,’ she shot back. ‘I can’t.’ ‘Well,’ she said after a lengthy pause, ‘that’s a problem.’ Yes, it is. Arthritis in my knees in my forties is a significant problem. Especially when I’ve also got back problems and everyone […]
Dating: Good Traits and Red Flags (Part 2)
Dating life is full of potential—for better and for worse. It can be fun and it can be risky, and it’s worth looking at both sides of the relational coin. In our last blog, we spotlighted some of the good traits to look for and consider in a partner or spouse. Today we’re focusing on […]