The Connection Corner

A daily source of encouragement and inspiration to connect your heart to hope and faith.

Stop Running, Start Resting

Psalms 46:10 — “Be still, and know that I am God. I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth!”

Ann was elbow-deep in tomatoes at the grocery store when a voice from the past stepped into aisle four.

It was Mrs. Martin, her second-grade music teacher. She had the same no-nonsense expression and same silver hair pulled tight. The only difference were the wrinkles and the orthopedic slippers replacing her old patent pumps.

Just like that, the memories returned. Music class. The rhythm drills. The clapping.

Ann never could get it right. Her classmates moved together in sync, but she always lagged a step behind. Mrs. Martin would pace the front of the room, heels tapping the tile, calling out.

“Beat, beat—rest,” she said. “You have to feel the rest! You cannot feel the rhythm if you do not know when to stop.”

Ann tried, but her timing always felt off. After a while, she stopped trying altogether.

Now in her fifties, she stood in that grocery aisle watching her former teacher, and a quiet thought rose.

I think I finally understand what she meant.

She had not clapped in years, but the pressure to stay in rhythm never left. Life just swapped playgrounds for deadlines. Instead of rhythm drills, it was school pickups, doctor’s appointments, late-night emails, and holidays to plan. Ann kept the pace. She showed up, but underneath it all, she felt like she was always a little behind—missing something she could not name.

Maybe that something had been rest.

Not a nap. Not a vacation. But the kind of stillness that leaves space for breathing, listening, and being.

Lately, she had begun making time for it—ten quiet minutes in the morning, a walk without her phone, a chair by the window in the late afternoon sun. At first, it felt useless, but over time, those moments became something sacred. She felt a different kind of peace began to rise, not from finishing the to-do list, but from laying it down.

And now she could hear it clearly: the rhythm that had always been missing. The rests were not interruptions. They were the invitation.

Ann glanced at Mrs. Martin once more and smiled. Some lessons just take longer to land.

So, friend, if your heart feels out of rhythm, just know that you were you were not created to run without stopping. You were made for a rhythm that includes real rest, and that is not selfish. It is where your soul remembers who God is.

What if you made space for it today? Not someday. Not after everything is done. Just one breath. One quiet prayer and moment of stillness. You might be surprised at the peace you finally feel.

July 25, 2025/by Bri Dunn

Guided by God’s Word

Daily Devotional, Heart of the Artist, Stories About Songs

2 Corinthians 12:8-9 — “Three times I pleaded with the Lord about this, that it should leave me. But He said to me, ‘My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.’ Therefore I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may rest upon me.”

I had already made the list in my head: I was not smart enough, not qualified enough, not the kind of person who should even consider Bible school.

Study music ministry? I could not read sheet music, much less memorize long passages or pass a theology class. Still, the thought would not leave me alone. Every time I prayed, I felt that tug—a strong, steady pull I could not ignore.

So, I started asking around. That was a mistake. Everyone I talked to told me no in one way or another. And I get it. They knew my story. I had spent most of my school years just trying to hide a learning disability, praying no one would call on me to read aloud.

Eventually, I made a deal with God.

“If You take away my learning disability,” I told Him, “I will go.”

I had been reading that part in the Bible where Paul begs God to take something painful away, and I thought, “That’s it. That’s how I will know. If God fixes me—that will be my answer.”

But He did not fix it.

What He did instead was slower, harder—and far more beautiful. He kept leading me back to that same passage, and each time I read it, I started seeing it differently.

God was not waiting to heal me so I could go. He was waiting for me to trust Him enough to go anyway.

So, I went.

The struggle did not disappear. Learning remained slow. Some days, reading Scripture felt like running uphill in the dark, but I kept showing up.

Now, years later, I can say with full confidence: His Word is my compass. It is what I use to make decisions when I am scared or uncertain or hurting. It corrects my thoughts when my feelings run wild. It reminds me that I am not the one holding everything together. He is.

These days, people carry a lot of convictions. We talk with passion. We post with intensity. But unless our convictions come from Scripture, they will not hold. They will only confuse us more.

Truth lives in the Word. And through it, God will do things you cannot explain—not always by removing your weakness, but by walking with you through it.

So, just know this: you do not need to be the best or the brightest to follow where God leads. You just need to know where to look for direction.

And His Word will never lead you off course.

— Mark Hall

Lyrics

Oh what I would do to have
The kind of faith it takes
To climb out of this boat I’m in
Onto the crashing waves
To step out of my comfort zone
Into the realm of the unknown where Jesus is
And He’s holding out His hand
But the waves are calling out my name
And they laugh at me
Reminding me of all the times
I’ve tried before and failed
The waves they keep on telling me
Time and time again, “Boy, you’ll never win!”
(Never win)
“You’ll never win!”
(Never win)

But the Voice of Truth tells me a different story
The Voice of Truth says, “Do not be afraid!”
And the Voice of Truth says, “This is for My glory”
Out of all the voices calling out to me
I will choose to listen and believe the Voice of Truth

The stone was just the right size
To put the giant on the ground
And the waves they don’t seem so high
On top of them lookin’ down
And I soar with the wings of eagles
If I’d stop and listen to the sound of Jesus
Singing over me

And the Voice of Truth tells me a different story
The Voice of Truth says, “Do not be afraid!”
And the Voice of Truth says, “This is for My glory”
Out of all the voices calling out to me (calling out to me)
I will choose to listen and believe (I will stand and believe)
I will choose to listen and believe
The Voice of Truth

Writers: Mark Hall and Steven Curtis Chapman

July 24, 2025/by David Hall

Take Back Your Thoughts

Daily Devotional, Tammi Arender

Philippians 4:8 — “Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things.”

Everyone said the newborn stage was hard—but this was something else. Clara felt distant from everything, even herself. When her daughter cried, she just felt numb and frustrated.

She hated admitting that, even to herself.

She feared that if she spoke the truth—how lost and detached she felt—someone might think she was unfit to be a mother. So she said what people wanted to hear. “We’re adjusting.” “Just tired.” “Everything’s fine.”

But nothing felt fine.

The fog made every day feel slow and heavy. Her body ached from doing the simplest things. Medication helped her function, but it did not bring her back to life. She missed joy. She missed herself. Mostly, she missed peace.

Then she found the right therapist. It was an answered prayer in disguise.

Clara showed up scared and ashamed, convinced she was failing, but the woman across from her never flinched. She just listened. No judgment. No pity.

One day, Clara said, “I cannot stop thinking these awful things.”

Her therapist replied, “What if your thoughts are not telling you the truth?”

Clara had never considered that. The woman continued, “Your feelings are real, but they are not in charge here. You are not stuck. You can choose where your thoughts land.”

It sounded impossible. But Clara gave it a try.

At first, it felt awkward. But little by little, she noticed the patterns—the quiet lies pulling her under. She began replacing them with something better. Sometimes it was her daughter’s breath against her chest. Other times it was the smell of breakfast or a sunbeam piercing through the curtains. Small things. But they were enough to turn her thoughts toward something better.

Since then, she has found hope, steadiness, and joy in this postpartum. It is all thanks to her new thoughts.

Clara still has hard days. But now she knows where to take her thoughts. She says “I can choose what I focus on. I am not my depression. I can find light, even here.”

And that has made all the difference.

So, friend, if your mind has been loud lately, maybe this is your moment too. You do not have to believe every thought that crosses your mind. Choose what is true, what is kind, and what is lovely.

Because the voice of God speaks louder than shame, and His truth gets the final word.

July 23, 2025/by Tammi Arender