I lie awakeCalculating the distance From womb to the world. It is such a short road to travel. You are nearly here, Less than arms-length away There is but the patient openingOf one long-awaited flowerThe quiet mechanicsOf one perfectly-crafted keyTurning in the lock of my bodyAnd moving through Blood and water ring of fireLife and…
Author: mackenziechester
My name is Mackenzie Chester. I am a wife and mother of seven. Welcome to my blog, The Sacred Everyday, where I write about waking up to the miracle of ordinary life through prayer, reflection, and creative practice.
Motherhood and Creative Fire (Podcast #15)
One of my greatest challenges as a mother has been finding the time and energy to tend to my creative life. In this episode, I am talking about creative fire–how it looks different in different seasons of motherhood and how important it is to nurture creative practice even in the blur of raising babies and…
The Birth Story to Come: Impressions of a Life Yet Unseen
I love to have conversations about birth. No matter how many times I find myself here, in the “any day now” space between pregnancy and delivery, I am struck by the sheer power of the experience of bringing a baby into this world. There is nothing routine about it. No matter how many times you…
Singing Out a Baby: A Birth Story (Podcast #14)
You can also listen and subscribe to this podcast on iTunes or Stitcher. Rune’s labor and delivery will serve as a metaphor for every difficult season of my life from here on out. In today’s podcast, I am sharing the story of his beautiful birth as well as thoughts on faith and fear, rest and…
One Small Garden: Tending the Life I Am Given
How do I keep finding myself here in the middle of the night? I should be sleeping. I tossed and turned an hour before surrendering to the river-rush of words that swept me up in its current and lifted my body out of bed and onto the quiet bank of the 3 a.m. kitchen table….
Becoming Brave: Thoughts About Birth at 4 a.m. (Podcast #13)
You can also listen and subscribe to this podcast on iTunes or Stitcher. Just a few weeks away from my ninth delivery, I am thinking of the profound influence that birth has had on my life. How it has caused me to lean on the perfect strength of God over and over again and made…
Restlessness and Surrender (Podcast #12)
You can also listen and subscribe to this podcast on iTunes or Stitcher. Restlessness is an invitation to trust God, to praise Him for all He has done, and to pray with greater fervency for vision. In this episode of the podcast, I am sharing my real struggles with restlessness and how it has moved…
An Open Letter to the Stranger in the Grocery Store
Walking through the produce section of the grocery store, I pass a stranger. Our eyes meet for a flicker of a moment, smiling, and then we move on. I wonder if this stranger has been in my house. If this was one of the dozens of anonymous people who came into my home while I…
In the Wake of a Miracle (A First Attempt at Words)
*This post is the beginning of an attempt to respond to the Great Miracle that has happened in our lives through The Everyday Good. 2 a.m. In my bed, I wake to words that press in around me and won’t let me sleep. I get up and make my way to the quiet basement with…
My One Small Voice
Standing at the edge of still watersin the middle of my lifelooking out on the reflection of the world that God in his lovingkindnesscreated for me to inhabitand enjoy The beauty of trees, sky, grassthe V-line of geese mirrored above and before me the sound of wind the distant moving rush of riverthe hum of…
The Story of a Miracle
On November 22, I got a random message from someone I barely knew. Hi!! Weird question… are you home? I thought it was odd, but odd things often happen to me, and I said, “Haha. Yes, what’s up?” The next text came: Wondering if I could stop by real quick? I know…so random… Just trusting…
10 Weeks of Podcasting! And an Update…
Dear friends, I am just stopping by to tell you that I have just posted a new podcast episode, and I’d love to share it with you. This is my 10th week of podcasting, and I am loving having these conversations about all the things that are on my heart. If you haven’t given the…