Wholesale Commonplace Vol. 11 - Wholeness

About this Issue Integration, mindfulness, holistic, perfect, healthy. On any given day, these words swirl about us, jumping off the page or screen, offering promises of the life we want. The amount of marketing material devoted to the desires of a woman’s heart is astonishing – and telling. We long to feel well, to lose the extra weight, to recover from trauma, to be happily married, to bear a child, to be safe in friendship. And at the root of every one of these desires is the greatest of all: to be whole…to not feel broken. Life is so often defined by what is missing or what is fractured. We are confronted constantly by the realities of a sin-crushed earth, with earth itself and our hearts within it, suffering disintegration and injury and brokenness. We yearn for it to be better and will go to great lengths to feel whole in our minds, our bodies, our hearts. What do we do with this deep, urgent longing to be made whole? We are like the woman described in Mark 5, fighting her way through the crowds, desperate for relief from her 12-year affliction. Somehow she sensed that if she could just get to Jesus, she would be okay. In one of the most powerful moments one can envision, Christ reached down to this poor, broken woman and uttered the words, “Daughter, be of good comfort: thy faith hath made thee whole.” (Luke 8:48, KJV) This issue of Commonplace is a collection of articles, photos, poetry, and artwork that tell the story of other women who have also met Jesus in this way. It's an issue of invitation, to come to Christ with our longings and find fullness in Him, believing that one day, He will make all well. • Cover illustration by Marla Wright • Includes the original poetry, articles, photography, and artwork of more than three dozen contributors • Features 200 pages offset printed on luxurious, uncoated paper. Book size: 8x10.