Lynne Baab • Tuesday January 10 2023
I have always loved water. We lived in Athens, Greece when I was 2 and 3. My dad was assigned to the American Embassy there, and my mom took me to the beach almost every day. She tells me I paddled around in an area for kids, using an inflatable ring. Later I learned to swim, and I still remember those incredible moments of deep peace when I would let myself hang suspended under water. No pressure to be a perfect daughter! No pressure to conform to standards I didn’t understand! Just silence, my body in held in balance by the...
Read full article »Lynne Baab • Tuesday January 3 2023
In her book Prayers in the Night, Rev. Tish Harrison Warren writes about the ways we relinquish control when we sleep. However, she notes that “our bodies and brains are not inactive in sleep. A whole world of activity happens inside our heads. We dream. We fight illness. We form, sort, and strengthen memories from our days.” Then she continues:
“And crucially, all of this happens without our knowledge, consent, or control. Our bodies require us to loosen our grip on self-sufficiency and power if we are to thrive. Both physically and spiritually, then, we must be willing to embrace vulnerability if...
Read full article »Lynne Baab • Tuesday December 27 2022
I used a Jewish Sabbath prayer in my book, Sabbath Keeping: “Days pass and the years vanish, and we walk sightless among miracles.” The prayer speaks to me about a common experience of humans. We simply don’t see the miracles around us.
As the prayer continues, the significance of seeing is stressed:
“Lord, fill our eyes with seeing and our minds with knowing; let there be moments when Your Presence, like lightning, illumines the darkness in which we walk. Help us to see, wherever we gaze, that the bush burns unconsumed. And we, clay touched by God, will reach out for holiness, and exclaim...
Read full article »Lynne Baab • Tuesday December 20 2022
Sometimes when we want to pray, the words just won’t come. Wordless prayer can feel inadequate and awkward. Sometimes being with Jesus, without using words, is exactly the right thing to do. Maybe we want to sit quietly with Jesus, or perhaps walk with him, holding his hand, enjoying his nearness. Perhaps we want to listen to God.
I started this blog series called “Draw Near” exactly six months ago. My favorite way to describe prayer is drawing near to God. Or to Jesus. Or to the Holy Spirit. The idea of drawing near comes from Hebrews 4:15-16:
“For we do not have...
Read full article »Lynne Baab • Wednesday January 22 2025
By Lynne M. Baab, author of Two Hands: Grief and Gratitude in the Christian LifeLynne Baab • Friday August 11 2023
By Lynne M. BaabLynne Baab • Saturday October 9 2021
By Lynne M. Baab. Originally published in Christianity Today, July 8, 2021
Lynne M. Baab, Ph.D., is an author and adjunct professor. She has written numerous books, Bible study guides, and articles for magazines and journals. Lynne is passionate about prayer and other ways to draw near to God, and her writing conveys encouragement for readers to be their authentic selves before God. She encourages experimentation and lightness in Christian spiritual practices. Read more »
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"Dear Dr. Baab, You changed my life. It is only through God’s gift of the sabbath that I feel in my heart and soul that God loves me apart from anything I do."
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