Don’t compare your sufferings to anyone else’s. Neither invalidating your experience nor assuming your obstacles are worse doesn’t help anyone. . Don’t compare your blessings to anyone else’s. Believe that “no good thing does he withhold from those whose walk is blameless.” Psalm 84:11 Ask for His best for you in whatever situation you are in. . Don’t refuse the…
Today I’m participating in the Five Minute Friday community. We’re supposed to write for five minutes and not edit. I take these rules as a kind of loose suggestion. The word prompt is: REGRET. I had a post all set to send you today, but I deleted it. Maybe I didn’t want you to know writing is a struggle right…
I’m not a photographer, but I like to occasionally snap photos. I attempted some one day, intending to give them as a gift. If the photos were good enough, maybe the recipient would use them in advertising. So I felt pressure, albeit self-induced since the recipient knew nothing about my intentions. Some I shot quickly, but on others I spent…
Hello friends, awhile back I about died laughing in the car rider line. I was reading a blog post on The Happy Geranium by Debbie Scales. Laughing burns calories, right? And it’s definitely heart medicine. Debbie and I first met through the Jerry Jenkins writers guild and have been online friends for over a year and a half. I requested…
I’ve waited for THREE MONTHS to share this post with you today!!! I am SO EXCITED to share my guest post on (in)courage’s website with you!!! It’s a game-changing message of hope that pulled me through the second-lowest point of my life but continues to encourage me when times are good. It started as a Christmas gift idea gone disastrously…
Dear Friend, I was at a party last summer with some of my husband’s co-workers – fellow engineers – discussing gardening with two of them. (Maybe I was doing more listening than talking.) My ears perked when I heard one bemoan, “The edible plants require SO much more water than the others!” The conversation continued down a different trail, but…
I was laying tilted back with my mouth agape, sporting the ever fashionable dentist napkin-thingy, while the dental hygienist poked and prodded with assorted tools. “Do you brush vigorously?” she asked, scraping away. I cautiously shook my head, to avoid getting stabbed. She tried to figure out why my gums receded and commanded me to heed how hard I brushed.…
My mom recently reminded me of our spontaneous, haphazard planting spree fifteen years ago. To this day, it’s a source of delight on so many levels. I’d spent the damp spring week at my parent’s home, a showcase of Pacific Northwest beauty. Always one to improve status quo, Mom held up tiny bags of flower bulbs and grinned. “What do…
I was about six years old when I realized I couldn’t save the world. Or at least not the kids Christmas choir.
I once heard a man say of his wife, “She goes to all these Bible studies, but nothing changes. Guess they’re a waste of time.” Ouch. I can think of numerous reasons why this may have been, but the point remains: The husband didn’t perceive value in his wife being part of Bible studies. Do you side with the husband…
