Heidi Chiavaroli's Blog

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I’m so excited to officially introduce you to Covenant of the Heart, my first biblical fiction novel (and my 16th novel!). The research for this book was just as compelling as writing the book itself. 

For this novel, I dove into the book of Jeremiah, creating a fictional daughter of Pashhur, the priest in charge of the temple (Jeremiah 20). Pashhur “had Jeremiah beaten and put in stocks” after he prophesied unfavorably against the leaders and the city of Jerusalem. I thought it would be interesting to create a daughter, Odelia, who did not agree with her father’s stance on Jeremiah. What if she explored the underground tunnels beneath the Holy City as a child, and what if she was asked to smuggle the ark out of the city before the Babylonians are able to break through the city walls–all against her father’s wishes?

I’ll be the first to admit that there’s a lot of imagining going on in this story. But like all my historical fiction novels, I have sought to ground that fiction in historical truth. The writing of this story helped me dive deeper into this ancient time period and better understand the complexities of the struggles the ancient Israelites faced at the prospect of the Babylonian siege. It helped me glimpse what the Israelite exiles faced as well.

I hope you appreciate it. I hope the journey not only entertains you, but encourages and inspires you. ♥️

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Celebrated since at least the third century, Pentecost marks the end of the Easter season, the birth of the church, and the celebration of the Holy Spirit being poured out on all believers. It’s quite a feast! Today, we remember the events of Acts 2—a roaring wind and a holy fire resting on the disciples. We see the reversal of the Tower of Babel and a new, emboldened Peter still inspiring us today. 

This also marks the conclusion of the Cycle of Life. From Advent to Christmas to Epiphany to Lent to Easter to Pentecost, we have come full circle in the life of Jesus and in the seasons of the earth. We now prepare to enter Ordinary Time (which in my opinion, is not really ordinary at all). It’s an adventure. It’s the working out of what God has done for us in the world. It’s working toward His new creation in our relationships and lives. 

Bobby Gross in his book Living the Christian Year, says “We reveal his light, we exhibit his life and we embody his love.”

I love how that can play out in a number of different ways. It’s a rhythm of work and rest, of belonging to the church, of living on mission, and of loving our neighbors. Not so ordinary after all, really!

The post What is Pentecost (and Ordinary Time)? appeared first on Heidi Chiavaroli.

Today, the fortieth day after Easter Sunday, we remember the ascension of Jesus that he spoke of in John 16 and which we see happen in Acts 1:9. Since the first century, Christians have observed this day as the day Jesus ascended to heaven. They remember his return to the Father, anticipate in gratitude the arrival of the Holy Spirit, and set their eyes ahead on doing His good work!

I can’t think about this day without remembering that Jesus, from where He sits at the right hand of God, intercedes for us through the power of the Holy Spirit. I love that. (Romans 8:34 and Hebrews 7:25) 

Consider commemorating this day (or sometime this week!) with a hike to a hilltop or perhaps having a picnic! If it’s raining like it is here in Massachusetts, perhaps simply observe the sky or a canopy of trees and remember that day of long ago. 

The post What is the Feast of the Ascension? appeared first on Heidi Chiavaroli.

Each book I write has an origin story, and this book’s inception (my fifteenth book!) began at Walmart.

 Most of you know I spent a good chunk of the last decade employed by Walmart. At first, it was a way for me to help out with house renovation bills. I started in the Lawn & Garden Center. I will never forget that May night nearly nine years ago when my husband and young boys came into the Garden center. I put down my leaky hose, wiped my hands on my super-attractive blue smock, and nearly fell into the petunias when my husband told me that my agent had left a message on the home phone with news of a contract offer from my dream publishing house. Talk about a Cinderella moment! ♥️ Shortly after this, I moved to the pharmacy department and obtained my technician’s license. Except for the night and weekend hours, I enjoyed this job. And, my imagination came alive.

 You’ll see some of Scout’s experiences in the beginning chapters of The Way Home reflected in my own. But the pharmacy is just a springboard to a larger story. A story that will lead us to coastal Maine and back to the Beacon Bed and Breakfast. It’s a story about forgiveness and healing and second-chance romance. It’s a story about grace and compassion and humanity. 

 I sincerely hope you enjoy!

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Okay, I know what you’re thinking. Easter was two days ago, why are we still talking about it?

But did you know that in the church calendar, Easter (like Christmas!) is actually an entire season?! A season even longer than Lent, at 49 days. Easter is the hope of the Christian faith and the holiest day of the year, but it expands to a time of communal observance in the following weeks. And why shouldn’t it?! This is the cornerstone of the faith, the bedrock of our hope. I think it’s one of the most beautiful things the church calendar can help us meditate on and observe. 

Easter gives us space to place our faith in the victory of God. Jesus ushered in a new way of being human when he burst from the grave—a way born of forgiveness. Forgiveness by God, forgiveness for one another. He gives us hope that death does not have the last word, that we will be given new bodies and someday, a new creation. He gives us the hope that his Spirit is with us, testifying to his love.

“Jesus’s resurrection is the beginning of God’s new project not to snatch people away from earth to heaven but to colonize earth with the life of heaven.”

~ N.T. Wright

I love this! Our life in Christ is not just a distant hope of a heavenly future, it’s also a beautiful invitation into the kingdom that Jesus inaugurated when he broke out of that tomb all those years ago. It’s an invitation to partner with God in his new creation now and today.

Happy Easter!

The post What is Easter? appeared first on Heidi Chiavaroli.

Today is glorious because we’ve seen the darkness of Good Friday. Today is glorious because it speaks of hope and new things. Today is glorious because our Lord has risen!

There is a lot to be said about Easter, the day we commemorate Jesus rising from the dead. Alleluia! But since today marks the beginning of an entire season in the church, I will save that for a later post. For now, Happy Easter!

“Easter is about the wild delight of God’s creative power . . . we ought to shout Alleluias instead of murmuring them; we should light every candle in the building instead of only some; we should give every man, woman, child, cat, dog, and mouse in the place a candle to hold; we should have a real bonfire; we should splash water about as we renew our baptismal vows. Every step back from that is a step toward an ethereal or esoteric Easter experience, and the thing about Easter is that it is neither ethereal or esoteric. It’s about the real Jesus coming out of the real tomb and getting God’s real new creation under way.”

~ N.T. Wright

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There’s a lot to be uncomfortable about on Good Friday. We have become used to associating a cross with Jesus, but the reality of the cross in Judea two thousand years ago was quite different.

The cross was a means of execution, but it was also a means of humiliation. It meant you were cursed, the lowest of the low. 

But why do we call it “good?” One explanation I found is that the “Good Friday” might be an alteration of an earlier English phrase, “God’s Friday.” So, in the same manner that our “good-bye” is a shortened version of the sixteenth-century saying, “God be with ye,” “Good Friday” could have also been translated in the same way.

And yes, of course, when we see the big picture and acknowledge the resurrection on the horizon on this end of history, it is indeed “good!”

I think it’s okay to sit in the uncomfortableness of this day. It is a dark and somber moment as we remember Jesus suffering and dying on the cross, “wounded for our transgressions,” and “crushed for our iniquities.” It’s healthy to sit with that and not be in a rush to celebrate the victory of Sunday. 

Danielle Hitchen in her book “Sacred Seasons” writes “As he hangs on the cross, Christ allows the sins of all humanity in all space and time to converge upon him as he gently, lovingly, agonizingly pours himself out in order to destroy its deadly power. We look on helpless, both grateful and horrified, as we witness this kairos.”

This is often a time of fasting, mourning, prayer, and repentance. Many churches observe the Stations of the Cross.

Today, I’m meditating on Jesus’s final words. “Father, into your hands I commit my spirit.” There’s a whole lot of meaning in these eight words, for Jesus in that moment, and for us now. 

The post What is Good Friday? appeared first on Heidi Chiavaroli.

The word maundy appears to come from the Latin mandate, which means, “commandment.” After Jesus washed the feet of the disciples, he said to them, “A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another” (John 13:34-35).

Jesus showed his love in action by not only washing the feet of his disciples, but by submitting to the torture of the hours ahead in going to the cross for us.

After he washed their feet, he had his last meal with them, the Passover feast. The Passover was celebrated every year to commemorate God bringing the Israelites out of their slavery in Egypt. They slayed a lamb and put its blood over the door so that the angel of death would “pass over” their houses. When Jesus commemorated this meal and told his followers to eat his flesh and drink his blood, he was pointing to a new Passover, one where he offered himself in place of the lamb. One where he invites us into the Father’s kingdom. This is what we acknowledge when we share in communion together!

As we remember these events, let’s remember Jesus washing us clean, let’s remember his love in action, let’s remember the good things he fills us with in place of the bad. As we approach the cross with him, let’s remember all he has done for us.

The post What is Maundy Thursday? appeared first on Heidi Chiavaroli.

Holy Week begins with Palm Sunday, the last Sunday of Lent. It’s the day we remember Jesus’s triumphal entry into Jerusalem on a donkey. 

Jerusalem at this time was preparing for the Passover celebration, so it would have been teeming with both residents and pilgrims. News was abuzz of a rabbi who’d raised a man from the dead just days earlier. Could this be the man they’d been waiting for that would free them from Roman rule?

When Judas Maccabee led a revolt that restored the temple in Jerusalem less than two centuries earlier, the Judaeans celebrated their freedom by waving palm fronds. To them, the palms were a symbol of national power and pride. So when they greeted Jesus with cries of “Hosanna,” which means, “Save us!” and waved palms, they were anticipating a military savior.

I read conflicting accounts of what Jesus’s intent was as far as choosing a donkey. Some scholars say that kings commonly came home from a victorious battle on a donkey—a symbol that indicated there was nothing left to be done. Other scholars say this was Jesus rejecting the will of the people. They wanted a military leader—he chose the most humble of animals to enter the Holy City upon. Still others say he was simply fulfilling the prophecy in Zechariah 9:9, 

“Rejoice greatly, Daughter Zion!
    Shout, Daughter Jerusalem!
See, your king comes to you,
    righteous and victorious,
lowly and riding on a donkey,
    on a colt, the foal of a donkey.”

No matter what he intended, it will soon become apparent that Jesus is not coming into Jerusalem as a military leader. And that will cause most, even those closest to him, to abandon him.

Today, many churches gather to wave palms to acknowledge this day (which will be later burnt for the ashes of next year’s Ash Wednesday).

As we look to Jesus today, it might be worth asking what we are approaching him for. Are we looking for things he never promised to provide—for power, riches, happiness, etc.? Or are we looking simply for him—his character, his goodness, his love, his grace, his unfailing kindness and compassion?

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This sacred season finds us in the forty days (forty-six, if we count Sundays) prior to Easter Sunday. The early church used Lent as a way to prepare hearts to celebrate the resurrection. This is a season of reflection and repentance, often alongside fasting.

Lent is not about a set of rules or practices we must follow—it’s a discipleship tool that can help us in our faith walk to bring us closer to Jesus. During this time, we can reflect on and lament the sin that separates us from God, holding it in tension with the extraordinary grace He offers us in Jesus.

As we enter this season, you may find it meaningful to meditate on the life of Christ, beginning with his time in the desert wilderness, moving on with Him as He walks to Jerusalem, and ending with kneeling alongside Him in Gethsemane. At every point, He had an opportunity to reject the cross. But He didn’t. He knew the road that would give us life.

So let’s sit in the uncomfortableness of this sacred season, asking God to lead us deeper in our walk with Him as we also look forward to the celebration of Easter.

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