animals – BeanSpired Editions

A white plastic basket sits on the ground in the aisle a barn. The basket has two rectangular compartments and a handle running along the divider between them. Its compartments are filled with various brightly-colored brushes and tools used to groom horses. The floor of the barn aisle is covered with rather dirty rubber mats. Shade and morning sunlight streak the ground. Under a board fence in the background are the plants and dirt of a paddock.

Waiting for Perfection

June 13, 2022June 13, 2022 Megan Bean

If God wants our sanctification so badly, why doesn't He just skim off our old selves and slip on the new in an instant? Why make us endure the wait?

A brilliant sunrise fills the sky over the dark treetops of a forest. Clouds ranging from gold to orange to dark pink and purple spread across a pale blue sky. The horizon where the sun is about to come up is almost white.

Donkey Devos, God

Not Like Us

March 31, 2022June 2, 2022 Megan Bean

He might be above and beyond us in just about every way. But He also draws close to us in all His holy otherness.

A furry gray donkey with a white nose and belly and a dark stripe down its shoulder stands in a snowy pasture. It turns its head toward the camera and pricks its ears. The pasture in which it stands is long and narrow, with wire mesh fences, and slopes downhill toward a forest. The forest consists of pine and bare deciduous trees. Through their branches the sky shows a bright cloudless blue. Some trees off-screen to the right streak the snow with shadows.

Donkey Devos, God, Holidays & Seasons, Tough Times

Finding God When Things Look Bleak

January 25, 2022June 2, 2022 Megan Bean

We may not always be sure what to make of what God sends us. But we can always trust and know the One who sends it.

The face of a dark brown donkey stares into the camera. He wears a forest-green halter with gold-colored hardware. His face, neck, and shoulder fill most of the picture. Beyond him to the left is a metal barn wall. A light gray donkey photobombs in the lower left corner of the image.

Donkey Devos, Life

Back to the Present

September 29, 2021June 2, 2022 Megan Bean

Our walk with God requires a similar presence of mind. In order to stick with Him through a world of temptations and uncertainty, we need to keep our focus on Him and where He is guiding us.

Donkey Devos, Gospel, Life

A Turn for the Better

August 26, 2021June 2, 2022 Megan Bean

By the grace of God repentance is possible. So how do we start?

Donkey Devos, God, Life

What It Takes to ‘Taste and See’

June 21, 2021June 2, 2022 Megan Bean

A life following Jesus isn't an easy life. But it's the best possible life we could ever live. And it takes us to the best place we could ever be: the heart of God, the very definition of goodness. You’d think we’d rush to taste that goodness. What kind of healthy human doesn’t want to experience inner peace, to be truly and faithfully loved, to live with a sense that they and their lives matter? Yet we hold back....afraid the sweetness holds poison. Convinced the fruit we’ve been told is scrumptious will turn out sour or bland. Suspicious that the goodness is all taste and no nourishment for our famished souls.

Donkey Devos, Relationships

Why We Need Good Friends

May 19, 2021June 1, 2022 Megan Bean

It sounds obvious, yet sometimes we seem to forget. We get caught up in work, routines, and family duties and relegate friendship to luxury status. Or we get plunged into pain or struggle and try to soldier on alone. We think we have to do it, that our burdens are ours alone to carry, that no one can ever understand, that no one should ever have to share our struggle.

Donkey Devos, Holidays & Seasons

Spring Cleaning for the Soul

March 24, 2021June 1, 2022 Megan Bean

Like barns (not to mention houses), our souls can benefit from some “spring cleaning” to clear away spiritual muck and prepare us for service.

Tough Times

Living in the Face of Your Nemesis

December 30, 2020June 1, 2022 Megan Bean

Maybe you're facing a problem, old or new, that has you frozen in your tracks or pacing in your bunker. Maybe you've tried giving it (or yourself) time, but found yourself growing stagnant. Or maybe, as overwhelmed as you feel at the thought of moving forward, waiting it out simply isn't an option. But how do we get moving? How do we live – really live – in the face of our nemeses?