I’ve recently grappled with the definition of safety: mine vs God’s. And it makes me really uneasy when I consider how dangerous real safety might be. I mean, I know the story of what happened to Jesus and he’s the one I’m claiming to follow. Where exactly are we going, God? Being free from fear and harm, and feeling certain…
Dear Friend, I’ve wracked my brain trying to figure out how to inject levity to the topic of troubled times. Except troubled times is not a humorous topic. It’s more of a just-shoot-me-now-and-do-it-quick type thing. I’ve deleted plenty of blog posts that, in essence, say just take it to Jesus, sister, and leave yer troubles there. Which, ok, yeah –…
Dear Friend, The past week has been hard though it’d be difficult to put my finger on exactly what was it that made it hard. And I must apologize to you for not sending you something last week, because I was too much in the middle of a battle. Or maybe somewhere on the bottom, might be more accurate. If…
Dear Friend, Who doesn’t need stability when health declines, loved ones die, or you just forget your razor on a camping trip? Right? It doesn’t necessarily have to be a life-threatening issue for me to realize I have issues. I forgot my razor on a four-day camping trip with friends over the fourth of July weekend. It introduced a new…
Dear Friend, You did everything you were supposed to and it still didn’t turn out as you’d hoped. Maybe not even close. Maybe abysmally far from what you’d prayed for. And then – test time – do you still believe God loves you? Of course I do. How preposterous to ask such a stupid question! But since God obviously forgot…
This story still moves me. I discovered the thoughts in an old journal, but I pray God uses it to breathe fresh hope. I’m getting just barely enough to survive. Drops of grace. Just when I think I can’t hardly take it, along comes one encouragement. But it’s just ONE. But at least it’s one. I’m trying to be ok…
It transformed how I viewed turning forty, but it started as an ordinary field trip to the local nature center with my son’s preschool class a few years ago. A room full of curious four-year-olds, a handful of parents, and a few teachers listened to the volunteer from the nature center explain the process of making maple syrup. Two interesting…
Calling All Quitters! Today’s Your Day! This was the subject heading of an email I received. I did a double take before realizing I misread it. (Must’ve needed another cup of coffee that morning.) It actually said “calling all QUILTERS” and was advertising a sale at a well-known fabric store. That one letter L makes a big difference! I think…
My Thoughts about the new release Control Girl by Shannon Popkin I was hooked from the start. I didn’t consider myself a control freak, particularly, but the book made sense of my anxiety and anger over ridiculous things. I first met speaker and author Shannon Popkin when she spoke at my church for Christmas 2015. Afterwards, we connected through her…
I was about six years old when I realized I couldn’t save the world. Or at least not the kids Christmas choir.
