A threshold is a marker place between a season that has ended and one that is to come. I suppose we all come to thresholds. We transition from childhood to adulthood, from single to married, from a parent who “knows everything”—to a parent who gets blindsided by a growing child’s unwise choice. We cross thresholds of geographical change and move to new places. We receive new opportunity (and headaches?) with job promotions.

Truth be known; life can put unthinkable challenges right before us—incidents that knock the breath out of us. Thresholds of trauma often usher in a crisis of faith. But disappointed faith is nothing new, nor is it to be feared, as long as we honor our questions and refuse to stay stuck. The theme of new beginnings is loaded with possibilities.

When there’s no way back to “what was”, spending time in the thin space of the threshold can become a sacred season of preparation before we step through to the other side. Those on a faith journey recognize in those in-between places, that our need for someone bigger than us is great.

God’s message to his people at thresholds is this: “Behold, I am doing a new thing; now it springs forth, do you not perceive it? I will make a way in the wilderness and rivers in the desert.” (Isaiah 43:19, ESV)

The crossing of some thresholds does not offer the luxury of return. That being said, what “new dawn” are you approaching? As for me, the beauty of sunrise is quickening my step over the threshold from loss into light. I’m feeling gratitude for what I once had, humility for how grief changed me, and hope for what lies ahead.

Are you standing at a threshold that requires waiting, wisdom, and more energy than you think you have? If so, I am honored to stand with you.

Crossing Thresholds