Author: colleen arnold

Colleen Arnold is a family physician, widow, mom and freelance writer living in Lexington, Va.

Have You Seen “The Chosen”?

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Have you watched the TV series “The Chosen? All three seasons are on Angel Network for free, and the first season is on Netflix. I don’t usually write about books or shows, but I felt compelled to share about this.

(photo “The Chosen” promotional image)

First, the bad news. A lot of it was hard to hear, some of it was hard to see, and some was just so slow I almost fell asleep.

However, once I got past all that, I loved it.

It’s based on the Gospels, but a lot of it is imagined. If you’ve read any of my meditations, you know I love to pray with my imagination.  I’ve envisioned Jesus smiling more often than frowning, laughing with his friends, and dancing at weddings. He has his serious moments and his angry ones, and he can see whatever untruths I tell myself, but he understands and is quick to forgive when I am ready to be forgiven. The show portrays him that way, too; it often feels like a prayer.

I also love the way it depicts the apostles. They are prideful, stubborn, annoying, and sometimes downright mean. Peter is bossy and unkind. Matthew hardly knows any of the Old Testament and annoys all the others (but he’s my favorite!). Philip is kind of crazy, and James and John are convinced they’re better than everyone else. What a bunch! A friend said, “I hate that they’re like that,” but I love it! It comforts me to remember that we are all human, and not a single one of us is perfect. Jesus loves us anyway – and chooses us.

These are not the only chosen ones; we all are.

Consider making some time during this Holy Week to check it out. Then come back and let me know what you think!

The Month of Hearts

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For our family, February brings multiple birthdays, several milestone anniversaries (including Neil’s death in 2015), and of course, Valentine’s Day. But lots of people don’t relish that heart-filled holiday. If you’re grieving someone you love, you probably want to dress in midnight black instead of red. If you aren’t in a romantic relationship, you may want to stay under the covers and ignore the day.

The modern interpretation of Valentine’s Day love is romantic, but it doesn’t have to be. There are multiple kinds of love. Yes, eros, romantic love, is one of them. Neil and I had some awesome February 14ths over the years.

But there is also storge, the familial love between parent and child or siblings. When the girls were home, we always had flowers and valentine’s candy for the whole family.  

Philos is the loving affection between close friends. My best friend usually sends me an e-card to remind me she cares.

Agape is unconditional, selfless love – the kind of love God has for us and that we are called to practice in the world. And I really do mean “practice” because we will never be able to love as totally, completely, and perfectly as God does.

So, what if this year, on Valentine’s Day, we practice agape and use our generous spirits to help someone else?

  1. Think of one person who needs extra loving kindness.
  2. Decide something concrete to improve their day.  It can be as simple as praying with them or as extensive as offering them a meal or a few hours of your time.
  3. It can be anonymous but not secret – they need to know someone thought of them even if they don’t know who the someone is.

What do you think? Up for the challenge? Take a moment today and come up with your plan; you’ll get as much out of it as they do. And I’d love to hear how it goes!

Happy New Year! (or, Get Out of Dodge!)

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Although we recognize that plenty of good things happened in 2022, the start of a new year can be melancholy – sadness for the people who are no longer part of our lives, regret over mistakes or missed opportunities, self-criticism for goals left unfinished. It’s easy to let those negative thoughts overpower the good ones until we’ve ruminated into a funk.

But how about if we try something different this year?

How about if we tell those negative voices in our heads to
take a hike,
hit the road,
get lost,
vamoose,
make like a tree and leave,
get out of Dodge,
beat it,
call it a day,
make yourself scarce,
go fly a kite,
make like a banana and split,
buzz off,
take a powder….

You get the idea.

Pay attention to those negative trains of thought and derail them! Tongue in cheek, but no less accurate. You don’t have to be a slave to those critical, disapproving, judgmental voices in your head.

When you catch your brain trash-talking you, turn it off. Literally do something else – recite a positive affirmation, say a prayer for yourself or someone else, do a few jumping jacks or deep knee bends – whatever it takes to get your ruminating brain out of the rut it’s digging.

Because just like our brains can have negative ruts that keep us trapped, with practice, we can build positive ones that are even deeper.

So instead of beating myself up because I didn’t post enough on this blog, I’ll fixate on the articles and posts I got published elsewhere. Instead of regretting goals that didn’t come to fruition, I’ll focus on ones that did.

How about you? Can you reframe those negative thoughts about 2022 into positive ones?

I’ll answer that – yes, you can!

What’s My Superpower?

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My family loves Disney, and our latest fascination/obsession is with the movie Encanto. A miraculous house grants powers to the family members who live there. For some reason, the heroine, Mirabel, isn’t given a gift or power when she comes of age, and the story tells of her search to find meaning in life as just an “ordinary” person.

Her sisters feel a different kind of pressure as they seek to live up to the gifts they’ve been given.

Isabela sings, “What could I do if I knew it didn’t need to be perfect?” in “What Else Can I Do?”

Louisa sings, “I’m pretty sure I’m worthless if I can’t be of service,” in “Surface Pressure.”

Don’t we all feel this way? Finding out who we are is a task for the young, but it is also something we face as we age and our circumstances change. If I retire, and I’m not a doctor anymore, who am I? Now that my daughters have all begun their own beautiful lives and I am not called upon to mother them every day, who am I? And doesn’t the world call us worthless if we can’t somehow be useful to society? Ouch.

As I shared this sense of shifting identity with one of my daughters, she said, “But you didn’t mention your Christian identity.” And she was right.

My identity in Christ isn’t based on what I can do or how perfect I am. It’s based solely on God’s love for me. He doesn’t care that I’m not perfect or strong or even useful. He knows me better than anyone else and loves me anyway.

So, my friends, if you are struggling to claim your identity, or find your gift, or identify your power, remember this:

Your identity is God’s beloved child.

Your gift is his unfailing and unconditional love, and your power is his love within you.

Though the mountains fall away and the hills be shaken,

My love shall never fall away from you

nor my covenant of peace be shaken,

says the Lord (Isaiah 54:10).

I’d love to hear your comments below, and if you know someone who could use this encouragement, please share.