Shannon's Corner

  I have stepped into a different role and a different routine for eight days. And honestly, it is somethings that I’ve looked forward to. I’m grateful for the opportunity, and I’m especially grateful that I’ll get to spend time with some really awesome people. There is something exciting about stepping outside of your normal routine and experiencing something new. But I also know that different is different. Even when we are excited about a transition, it can still come with challenges. I’ve been given instructions and a schedule to help guide me through these eight days. I have some idea of what to expect, but I also know there will be things I encounter that I have never done before. I’ve already had to learn and navigate things that are unfamiliar to me. And that has reminded me of something important about life transitions: You can be grateful for a transition and still find it challenging. We sometimes assume that if we are excited about something new, it should feel easy. Bu...

  Purpose is the sense of meaning and direction that comes from living in alignment with what matters most to you—your values, relationships, gifts, experiences, and the way you want to contribute in this season of life. Purpose answers questions like: What matters to me? Why does what I do matter? How do I want to show up in the world? Who do I want to become? What do I want my life to contribute? Purpose can change its expression across seasons. Your purpose doesn't necessarily disappear when you leave a job, retire, experience a loss, change careers, or step away from a ministry. The role through which you expressed purpose may change. For example, someone may have spent years expressing purpose through caring for others professionally. When that role ends, they may wonder, “If I'm not doing that anymore, what am I here for?” The transition becomes an opportunity to explore how the same values—compassion, connection, service, growth—might be expressed differently. Purpose is...

  WooHoo!!!  Celebrate with me as we have reached and surpassed the 2026 budget goal of $65,500.  God is so good.  THANK YOU!  I am overwhelmed with gratitude and how the Lord has increased my faith in resting securely in Him to provide and how He has invited each of you to be a part in this incredible ministry.  Thank YOU! What a joy to be able to experience and learn about a different culture, Armenia.  A pagan country until the third century when St. Gregory the Illuminator came to share the good news of Jesus Christ with the King of Armenia.  St. Gregory was first thrown into a six meter pit at Khor Virap to die but God kept St. Gregory alive. Thirteen years later, the king was dying and St. Gregory was sent to come and pray to the true God for the king’s healing.  The king lived and became a Christian and had all the pagan temples in the country removed and churches built in their place. Armenia was known as the first Christian nation. T...

  Have you ever found yourself asking that question? Maybe you used to wake up knowing what you were working toward. You had a role, a responsibility, a dream, a calling, or a place where you felt needed. And then something changed. Sometimes the transition is something you chose. Sometimes it was chosen for you. And somewhere along the way, you realize: “I don't know what I'm doing anymore.” You may feel confused. Numb. Disconnected. Sad. Grieving. Apathetic. Things that once brought fulfillment don't seem to matter in the same way. You may even wonder: “What is my purpose now?” Purpose is often connected to the roles we hold and the things we do. These roles can give our lives structure and meaning. So when a role changes or disappears, we can experience more than the loss of an activity. We may experience a loss of identity, belonging, contribution, direction, and meaning. We might wonder: Who am I if I'm not doing what I used to do? And sometimes the deeper question...

  How do you define “home”? For some people, home is a place—the house where they grew up, the town they have lived in for years, or a familiar community. For others, home is more about the people. Home is where their family is, where their friends gather, or where they feel known and loved. I have personally defined home as “where I am.” Perhaps you can relate. If you have moved from house to house, city to city, church to church, school to school, or job to job, you may have learned how to make home wherever you are. You unpack, learn the new rhythms, meet people, and begin creating a life. But recently, while spending time with some Third Culture Kids, I was reminded that the question of “Where is home?” can be much more complicated. For a TCK, home might be the country where they were born, where they spent their childhood, where their parents are from, or a place they haven't lived in for years but still carry within them. Sometimes they have several places they call home. Som...

  Over the past few articles, we’ve explored transition through the picture of a garden—sowing seeds, cultivating the soil, growing beneath the surface, pruning, and harvesting. Holding all of these together is one simple truth: There are seasons. And so do we. There is a time for planting, waiting, growing, pruning, harvesting, and beginning again. We wouldn't walk into a garden in winter and wonder why there isn't a harvest. We understand that winter has a different purpose. Yet we can be hard on ourselves when we're in a season of waiting, rest, loss, or beginning again. What if instead we asked: What does this season need from me? Maybe it needs patience. Maybe courage. Maybe rest. Maybe grief. Maybe exploration or action. Sometimes we want growth when we're being invited to rest. We want answers when we need to sit with the questions. We want to harvest when the seeds have barely been planted. Transition becomes exhausting when we constantly fight against the seaso...

  Harvest is the evidence that something has been growing all along. A harvest is the result of a process. A harvest is the result of planting, tending, waiting, and sometimes weathering unexpected challenges. In transition, we can become so focused on what is next that we forget to notice what has already grown. Maybe you have gained clarity. Maybe you’ve learned to set healthier boundaries. Maybe you’ve discovered strength you didn't know you had. Maybe you’ve learned to trust, rest, grieve, or begin again. These are harvests, too. When we're in transition, it's easy to focus on what we haven't figured out yet. Instead, pause and ask: What has this season grown in me? What have I learned? What has changed? What wisdom am I carrying forward? What can I celebrate? Not every harvest looks the way we expected. Sometimes the outcome is different from what we imagined, but we discover that we have become different along the way. Don't Rush Past the Harvest Before asking...

   SHANNON’S CORNER Connect. Nurture. Grow. This month has reminded me again that we are doing this ministry together.  When I sit across from someone for a debrief, when I meet with someone for coaching or a care session, when I prepare to travel to care for ministry workers and TCKs—you are part of those moments.  You may not be sitting in the room with me, but your prayers, encouragement, and financial partnership help make it possible for me to be there. And this month, we have had some meaningful opportunities to be present with people in the midst of their stories.  I have had the privilege of providing two individual debriefs, one family debrief, four care sessions, and three coaching sessions.  Each conversation has been different, but there has been a common thread: people need space to slow down, process what they have experienced, and listen for what is next. One of the individual debriefs especially stays with me.  She came to the debrief f...

  There is another important part of gardening: Pruning. It can feel counterintuitive. Why would you cut something that is growing? Why remove a branch that looks healthy? Why let go of something that has been part of the plant for so long? Because sometimes growth requires making room. Transition often brings an invitation to prune. Life transitions have a way of revealing what is no longer working. A role may no longer fit. A relationship may need new boundaries. A routine that once served you may now leave you depleted. An expectation you carried for years may no longer align with who you are becoming. Even good things can sometimes need to be released when they no longer belong in this particular season. And that can be difficult. We can become attached to the familiar simply because it is familiar. We may hold onto commitments because we said yes years ago. We may continue carrying responsibilities because we don't know who we will be without them. We may fear that letting go ...