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Trisha Keehn

Writer

Trisha Keehn is a creative writer fueled by a lifetime of faith. She is part of the Life.Church and YouVersion Bible App creative writing team, and uses her broadcast news background to help companies choose their words wisely. Trisha is a wife, mom, coffee connoisseur, lover of libraries, and a savvy traveler.

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Where Everybody Knows Your Name

I stepped in with caution and looked to my left. There she was, one of my deepest of friends, waiting patiently with her chin resting in her hands propped up on the table. She jumped up with delight as the smile spread across her face and came running toward the door, thrusting her arms around my neck. Still faint from the journey, my fragile shoulders raised to exchange an embrace. We burst into an explosion of conversation before the coffee was even poured. Stepping up to the register, I hear a familiar voice in the background from behind another counter, ‘hey girl! where have you been?’

Take a trip from home and it isn’t long before we realize how often we take these friendly exchanges for granted. What pleasure can be found in a familiar face and these cordial greetings. The joy is incomparable when we’re in a place where everybody knows your name.

The following day, I attended a work meeting informing leadership about the current state of our scope of work and the projection of where we’re heading. My interest peaked when a fact revealed that many who are homeless or low income visit emergency rooms only because they are lonely and have no one else to talk to. They’re understanding is that it’s a place where someone knows their name and will listen.

The next day while at a luncheon, I met a woman who answers suicide and crisis calls in her line of work. I asked how she handles these situations and if it takes long to take people down from their emotions. She responded, “Really, I just listen most of the time. They are calling because they want someone to just listen and that’s what I’m there for.” She hears repeat callers from time to time because they now know someone will be there when they call.

What if the only place you had to turn for a friend was the ER or a crisis line? Perhaps we already feel this way. We live in a society that is subconsciously disconnecting from each other daily through social media, refraining from exposing too much of the soul, in fear this vulnerability would reveal something we are insecure and ashamed of in ourselves. When emergency strikes, the proverbial veil on this mask we all wear (to some degree) lifts as the beauty of honesty and a naked soul is uncovered. It is in a state of crisis that we reach out and find a friend in anyone who will listen. Are we all just living in a state of emergency?

Before I left for my trip, I stocked up on 30 packets of EmergenC, because I knew I was going into some rough territory, would be in close quarters with people on the plane and in trains, and could possibly be exhausted from the adventures each day. Each morning, I poured 1,000mg of Vitamin C into a glass of water, swallowed the solution and ran out the door. I was resting in my knowledge that a healthy body could keep an emergency away.

There’s no packet of powder you can take that will fill the void of a friend, a familiar face or a listening ear. These are irreplaceable gifts. You are irreplaceable because to someone you are a friend, you are familiar, you are an ear. Emergencies bring panic, fear, tension, and tears. Our Creator didn’t create us to live in a state of daily crisis, this is why He gave us community. Who do you need to reach out to today; maybe just to listen to, maybe just to be a familiar face? Let’s vow to stop this state of living in emergency and be a friend to everyone.

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Begin Again

There’s a message that’s been murmuring in my thoughts and trailing under the point of my pen over the last month and it’s this very simple phrase; Begin Again.

When I fall off the scales in a heaping bowl of ice cream and have no excuse like exercise to fall back on… it’s time to begin again. When I find the days flying by with fleeting to-do’s yet little that remains lasting… it’s time to begin again. When I dedicate the better half of a month to achieving a goal and wake up on day 30 to realize I fell off the bandwagon a quarter of the way through… it’s time to begin again. When anxiety consumes my mind with worry and shame sets in for the hurts I’ve caused… it’s time to begin again!

The other night God woke me in a dream. I had been in a room with glass along one wall and there was a door that led to a patio, which overlooked the world. I was in the room looking for something. I don’t know specifically what I was searching for but I had a sense it wasn’t good and that I’d been doing this for awhile… years maybe. While in this room looking under a bed, God said to me, ‘how long?’ I asked Him, ‘what do you mean?’ He said, ‘how long have you been holding on?’

I realized in that moment I had spent years searching, proving, trying to figure out the past, the mistakes, the regrets, instead of opening the glass door into something new, with a view, of the world. Just through the door were opportunities I had been passing by because I was choosing to stay inside, searching for the ‘pain’, which I’m sure over time had become comfortable and a part of me.

After months of troubling prayers for deliverance, God was showing me the door has always been there. It’s time to get up off my knees, stop the search party and the incessant prayers, and actually walk through the grace He’s already provided and just… begin again.

God, oh my gracious God, you are always good to us. Forgive me Father, for feeling like you’ve been holding back good things and a way out. I feel very elementary in my faith when I reflect on your Word and wonder ‘how in the world did I miss the door?’ Help me to trust you God, as I walk by the light of Your Word. Open my eyes and ears Lord, that I may be reminded of your provision in my past each time I look for you in the future. You are remarkable. Incredible. Awesome in all that You are. I am so blessed to know you as my Father. Thank you God.

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A New Life

This week my heart has been heavy and burdened with unbearable pain for my sister and brother-in-law as they grieve the loss of their baby. I don’t know how parents endure such anguish; I have been so distraught for words. This tragedy falling on the same week we celebrate the death and resurrection of Jesus; God’s only son. The crushing uncanny sorrow and grief numbed my heart to feel anything at all.IMG_3286

This morning I brought my burdens with me to the sanctuary and with arms stretched wide, I found sweet surrender in worship of our Saviour King. Freedom found me and overwhelmed this soul. My heart basking in the warmth of His light as it shined brightly on my face and flooded everything in me. The pure, all-consuming love of Christ laid all the agony to rest.

Though the storms stirred dust on the surface, every hope within me has been resting in the peace of God’s Spirit that’s remained standing securely in the depths of my soul. Though it seemed so much had changed, my God stayed the same! No wind or wave can ever waver the goodness and grace, the hope and joy, and the absolute sovereignty of my God. I stand amazed at the peace surpassing all understanding, dwelling deep inside.

He alone is good, and because of that, this beaten down heart has been delivered from the burdens of sin and the heartaches in this world.

Jesus, oh my Jesus! You alone are good. Enduring my pain on the cross, raised to life from the dead, you have conquered the grave and claimed victory as my valiant King, so that I may have a new life, free from the burdens of our fallen world. The gift you have given is beyond anything I could ever return; this sacrifice is unspeakable when I think upon your ways. Your unfailing love is unfathomable and yet, I’m asking for more to flood my heart, my mind, my ways… craft in me a new thing that honors You, my King. May this world experience the joy of your work in every breath I exhale, every word that’s delivered, with every beat of my heart, in every step that I take… to you be the glory, Jesus, forever and ever. Amen.

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What Fasting Is Really For

I have a confession to make. I don’t always write my blog posts in the same day or week. Once in a while I will sit behind the keys and pen out several posts at a time, as the Spirit flows through my fingers. And thank God for that because other times, I’ll stare at my screen wondering why a single thought doesn’t come to mind. Tonight, this is my second writing.

The last couple of years I’ve been working on regular fasting. During these prayer times, I began to notice thoughts about God effortlessly pouring out into my journal and blogs. It’s as if God’s thoughts became my thoughts and I transformed into a well seasoned writer, authored by the Spirit transcribing insights from the Heavens. Yet, when I wasn’t fasting, I seemed plagued with ‘writer’s block’. Writing on demand is different; convictions cause content to spill out into stories that move other people.

This all caused me to question the closeness of my relationship with God when I wasn’t fasting. My desire was to hear His ‘still, small voice’ all the time. So I thought if I could fast every Sunday, this would surely clear the queue of distractions and help draw my heart in a little closer. It became very stressful and sadly, I wasn’t retaining any depth from this one day.

I was having lunch with a girlfriend yesterday and mentioned my unfruitful efforts to fast, so that I could hear God’s whispers. I told her I had finally given up my frequent fasts because I felt they were becoming too forced and that perhaps my heart may have been trying to control God’s voice in my life. In this situation, stopping seemed like the best thing for me.

This morning God led me to Isaiah 58. I’m going to paraphrase: The Israelites were being pious, coming into the Temple every day, acting delighted to learn all about God. They pretended to want to be near God by saying ‘We have fasted before you! Why aren’t you impressed? We have been very hard on ourselves, and you don’t even notice it!’

Here’s what God said: “I will tell you why! It’s because you are fasting to please yourselves… You humble yourselves by going through the motions…  Do you really think this will please the Lord? This is the kind of fasting I want: Free those wrongly imprisoned; lighten the burden of those who work for you. Let the oppressed go free, remove the chains that bind people, share your food with the hungry, and give shelter to the homeless. Give clothes to those who need them, and do not hide from relatives who need your help.”

I-Yi-Yi! Yes, that spoke to me alright! The conviction cut like a double edged sword! I’ve been making this fast about me and my writing instead of allowing the freedom of the Spirit to flow in His timing. Instead of moving in my love for God by loving others, I had been more concerned about His work in me. Whew! Let me just tell you, I have been rolling this chapter over in my mind for several days since then.

I’m very thankful that God doesn’t give up on us, even when we’ve got it all wrong. He continues to feed us His word and draw us back to the heart of worship. What an amazing God, what a faithful Father. I am in awe at His goodness and generous grace that He lavishes upon a heart, even when it leans away from His desires. He lovingly calls out in His Word, pointing us in the direction we’ve been searching for all along. Thank you Lord.

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Accepting Imperfection

For years I’ve struggled with perfectionism, and unfortunately that prevents some things from actually being “complete(d)”.

My desire for perfection is not wrong. We were made for it! Perfect bodies, perfect relationships, perfect minds… It’s like something deep inside me keeps trying to find the perfection my soul looks for.

It’s not wrong to long for it; just wrong to expect it on earth. It can’t be found here. There is truly something wrong with everything!

One day perfection will come again (AMEN!).

Until then, I’ve since fired my inner critic and am trying to accept the earthly imperfections; which takes the burden off me. I am accepting who I am instead of who I wish I was, while accepting others as they are and the world as it is, instead of striving to put a stamp of perfection on them. Much joy and freedom has been found in my heart as the chains of perfection have been released.

God, you see the deepest parts of my heart; how I’ve allowed perfectionism to penetrate into my work and relationships and crowd out my joy. Cleanse my mind, sanctify my soul… May I instead become a girl of grace, a woman who reflects your joy for others to see. I can’t do it on my own. God, go deep inside me and do your work. May my heart find contentment in this acceptance, looking only to you as the Perfect One, my Father, Author and Creator. Craft on me a renewed sense of joy! In Jesus’s name I pray, Amen.

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Love By Faith

The difficult part of praying for a life that mirrors Christ’s love, is that we are faced to love when we don’t want to, when we don’t feel like it, when we get nothing obvious in return, when they don’t deserve it, when they’re not worth it, when they don’t know it and even when it makes no difference. Yet, we live it out anyways.

For the last few months now, I have been convicted of Christ’s love as I pray to share more of it. There is someone who deeply and ruthlessly betrayed me over the course of three years. In wisdom, every counselor and mentor advised strict boundaries to stay away from the toxicity and ‘unsafe’ person. I forgave their actions and prayed for healing and restoration in their lives. A few months later, I moved states away. But the harassment and hurting continued until one day, this person also moved to my new city and stepped into my circle of friends. I became so distraught by the turmoil of pain and alone in my struggle. It seemed no matter how I tried to ‘brush off the dirt’ and walk away from the past, God’s love was pressing in deeper, asking me not to walk away from people. With nowhere else to turn, I began praying for a desire to deeply love them and God’s power to walk in it. I felt everything in me die as I invited Jesus to do the impossible; to help me love the ‘unlovable’.

As the weeks passed, I continued praying through the pain until that day came; when Jesus carried me in courage, strength and favor. The love of Christ consumed me as I sought out and embraced this person. And only in His power, my heart was able to walk out a love that desired to willingly serve. Instantly, I experienced insurmountable JOY and FREEDOM that I cannot adequately describe.

I think we find loving so painful because we try to love with our own emotions and our eyes fail us when love doesn’t bring about the exact results we want and asked for. But we are called to love by faith. Love our enemies by faith. Love our betrayers by faith. Love a bitter parent by faith… not a feeling. Living love is a daily commitment to throw off preferential affections. We live by faith. We love by faith. If we truly become a person who makes a lifestyle of believing God, we will become bolder in our love for others and what we’re willing to believe God for in their lives.

Walking in love doesn’t always feel warm fuzzy. Sometimes our only motivation is obedience to God. If no one else catches the love we sacrificially give, know that God will.

And hope does not disappoint us, because God has poured out his love into our hearts by the Holy Spirit, whom he has given us. Romans 5:5

Oh my Lord, the things you bring us through astounds my eyes. You are faithful to deliver us from the stronghold of bitterness and hatred, so that our hearts may experience the freedom and joy you authored in this life! May the fruit of Christ’s love within us surface in our words and walk today. We come yielded to your authority, may we be so filled by your Spirit, Lord. Guide us to those relationships we still harbor grief in. God, give us the strength to walk out your unfailing love. Help us to actively love others and pray those big prayers for them. You were faithful yesterday and you will be faithful today. We trust you for more faithfulness in our future. May we love by this same faith.

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End It

Each year, the world joins hands to take a stand against modern slavery with the End It Movement. When asked why I wore a red “x” on my hand, I explained there are currently women being held in prostitution rings and children being chained to labor but sadly, we thought the days of slaves was over. Truthfully though, we’ve turned a blind eye and just stopped looking.

It all got me thinking. You know, many of us, are slaves to sin. We choose the lure of lust, bitter behaviors, arrogant attitudes instead of love, peace and joy with others. We turn a blind eye to rated ‘R’ movies, a man on the corner with his hand out and gossip that fuels our sickness for satire. We get greedy with our money, label others by their sins and pronounce glory on ourselves in a prideful job well done. We are slaves to sin. We clash against the chains, struggling in a stronghold, fighting for freedom from this sin that enslaves our hearts.

In silence there is safety—safety from potential prosecution or pain from the backlash, safety from the danger of facing a difficult truth: that the quiet, close-knit Christian community could be cruel, cowardly, and lawless. And yet, despite our wishes, history is full of cruelty, cowardice, and lawlessness. Nowadays, though, we are not so much silent as talking loudly about anything that will help us avoid being the target. We suffer under a conspiracy of misdirection. Satan is sliding in through the backdoor and we miss the carpet being pulled from underneath our feet.

This isn’t about ‘right’ or ‘wrong’ but about the Truth that as slaves to anything, we cannot be fully free. We war against the box of cookies that keeps showing up in the cupboard, the gym membership buried in our mind, the word ‘yes’ that slips out when everything in us is says ‘no’, the negative thoughts that materialize into words, the lack of generosity for others needs, the pride in ourselves that crushes compassion for others. The triumphalist rhetoric, instead, lets us—tells us to—look away.

May I encourage you in this day not to wait another second dismissing bondage under a cloak of grace. Release the beast, so that you can experience the fullness of His Spirit! I don’t want to be bound to the empty life this kind of slavery is destined for. My captivity to sin is a choice. Jesus came to set me free from the burden of this kind of slavery. No more laboring. No more pleasing. I am free. Heavenly Father, release the fullness of your Spirit on us. Strengthen our hearts and minds in the midst of any fear and press into our hearts, increasing our desire for even more freedom. I’m thanking you in advance Lord for what you’ve already done and what’s about to happen in us. Amen!

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Heart Surgery

The seconds feel like forever, so I have no words for these minutes, days and months. The beat has stopped, blood drained and my heart completely exposed. No anesthetic is administered for this operation. Folks in the waiting room should be alarmed at the length of time it’s taking, but I suppose that only reveals the severity of this sickness, the depth of my ‘disease’. Unfortunately, any complications prolonging this procedure are due to my own stubbornness. I’m clinging to the contaminated because it’s comfortable. It’s been with me for so long, we’re sadly inseparable.

My eyes are wide open during most of this, though I wish they didn’t have to be. My soul struggles with what I can see, coping with excruciating anxiety and looking for anything to pacify the pain. The sinking sharpness of His Spirit stings as the blade of His Word sinks a little deeper. I pray and the compassion in His presence calms every nerve, closing the lids over my eyes. And that’s when I feel the tenderness in His touch, sedating my senses in the surgery. Tides of tears fall in rhythm with the piercing pain yet, I will be living a dead life if this procedure doesn’t happen.

Not that my mind isn’t troubled in this turmoil and the pain isn’t plentiful, but I know the Great Physician is the only one equipped to operate in such a desolate, vile place. For the most part, I find rest and peace in knowing God’s specialty is raising dead things to life. I’m discovering His ministry in my misery as this heartbreak brings great healing in others. Passion runs from the roots of pain. My writing is only the overflow of His healing nectar in my brokenness.

I haven’t known a single person who bears the evidence of God’s presence and power in their lives, who hasn’t also been asked to walk in dramatically painful obedience. Though we’re changed on the inside, our minds take time to catch up. Paul reminds us of this in Ephesians 4:22 You were taught with regard to your former way of life, to put off your old self, which is being corrupted by its deceitful desires; to be made new in the attitude of your minds.

Lord, I want to see generations fall into your heart. No more lies, no more fears. Consume their hearts, open eyes and craft their character to see and be magnetized by the beauty of who you are that their feet will fall into the path that leads to righteous, holy living. Despite depression or despair due to my own decisions, you will always be my Daddy. Your word says you are the Defender of the weak and draw near to the brokenhearted. I’m inviting you to come deeper than before and let me drink from your well of life. I am securely yours with no shame. Drench me in your grace and peace and create a new thing in and through me as I willingly lay bare my weaknesses, so that your power, my King, may be made perfect. For when I am weak, then I am strong.

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Breaking Out From A Rut and Planting New Roots

This has been a tough few weeks. I have felt deterred by the weight of devil’s cunning devices to distract my good intentions with mediocrity. I’ve been settling on things that are ‘acceptable’ and ‘honorable’ but not beneficial or considered wise concerning His plans for me.

My determined worship that discovers facets of His being have been disturbed and I utterly miss His secrets; about Himself, His plans, His desires for my life. All this busyness has been meaningless when you consider that I’ve made Jesus a ritual of religiosity, merely breathing through the motions of morning prayer. The roots of my relationship with Jesus go deeper than my most recent attempts to usher in His presence and that is why I so tenderly confess that my heart has been slowly breaking for a breakthrough.

I didn’t just wake up here. Some weeks ago, I allowed Satan to steal my joy through a circumstance that didn’t come out as I had hoped. A rather crushing blow. I let the devil demoralize my heart by preying on one of my greatest fears. I had failed… me. Days of seeking and studying ‘joy’ did not parade in a restored life of rejoicing. With every fiber in the fabric of my being, I have been so desperate for an intervention of deep communion with God. I’ve been crying out for Christ to intercede.

Joshua 1:5 “No man will be able to stand before you all the days of your life. Just as I have been with Moses, I will be with you; I will not fail you or forsake you.”

Did you catch that? He will not fail us. We may fail, but God will not. And He is for us! Failure doesn’t always look like a grievous sin or mishap. Sometimes it’s a slow decline or decay that snatches up unsuspecting, sincere followers of Christ. God is the strong arm that picks us up when we struggle to stand on our own. Abba wipes away our tears, brushes off the bloodied scrapes on our knees and mends the wound in His warm embrace. When our Author’s plans for hope and a future seem out of reach, He reaches down to offer them up! At this time, it seems all I can do is cast myself entirely upon His ability. I’m blinded to any ambition but to please God. I’m grabbing onto the hem of His garment for healing and grace to go where He leads. As I walk in the shadow of the Almighty, He equips me to do the impossible. There I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.

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Grossly Blessed

Recently I’ve been convicted in my tithe efforts. First came a message from Rob Morris, who pastors Gateway Church in Southlake, Texas. He stirred my heart when the great debate between tithing on gross or net was summed up in this statement: I’d rather be blessed based on the gross, rather than my net. I realized that I had been giving to God what was left over after the government and insurance had their say; my heart was saddened. Though my intentions were good, I didn’t act on this conviction.

A second message that gripped my conscience was by Craig Groeschel of Lifechurch.tv in Oklahoma City. He and his wife increase their giving each year by 1 percent, regardless of a pay raise or circumstance. Groeschel said they were in the habit of giving this way before any big increases came in their family or ministries.

Tithing doesn’t just increase God’s blessing in my life, it increases my faith in His provision. It stretches me wider and deeper, and I begin to experience an even more intimate relationship with my Abba. So I decided to take that step. I made a commitment to increase my level of giving each year from here on out by 1 percent. And I chose to start tithing on my gross income, throwing in the first increase that very day (which was last Sunday). I felt remarkably better knowing it was off my chest and in God’s hands.

Tough days followed and I forgot about my commitment in church, that is, until my accountant emailed the final summary. As a single adult, I always pay in, so I was not looking forward to filing, like most people I know. This time was different though, as it reflected the government was returning to me 10 times what I gave to God just a couple days before. It was in this moment that I knew my Provider was honoring that faith on Sunday and saying ‘well done, my good and faithful servant’.

I don’t always see the fruit of my faith honored/blessed/returned with rapid response, but when I do, I am eager to give God Almighty the glory by encouraging others with stories of His hand at work. Our God is real, alive and moving mightly today, just like yesterday and just like He will be tomorrow! May you find His hand of extravagant provision in your life, as you put Him first in your giving and in all you do.