Life. Can. Be Tough. You know it. I know it. We’ve all live in those moments. Some of those moments in my life include: a stage III cancer diagnosis, a job loss, and one of my children fighting for her life. My list goes on. I bet you can identify with and add on to…
Category: Faith
Taming the Tongue
My eyes widened in surprise as my face flamed. Usually even-tempered, the hot heat in my cheeks was almost visible to me. I was furious. Oh, did I ever have a ready retort, waiting to roll off my tongue. I had never been so angry. Or hurt. I was justified, any jury would agree, God…
All Grown Up?
The disappointment swam in her eyes behind the small, plastic smile. I’d had to say “no”. I tried to explain, but how many teens maturely comprehend why a mom says ‘no?’ She quickly ascended the stairs to her room. She respectfully didn’t stamp or stomp. She didn’t huff and puff. She didn’t slam the doors…
Rest, Restore, and Renew
The week between Christmas and New Year’s is a quiet one this year. While we usually continue at a break-neck pace, this year we decided to slow down. We decided not to travel, not to overbook, and not to give into the temptation to cram as much as possible into that one week. It has…
Welcoming Interruptions, Welcoming Jesus
Mary was a young lady with a special light in her eye. She would soon be the wife of an honorable man. As a young woman with God’s will on her heart and His laws on her mind, she knew she desired only to live for God. Her reactions to an angel’s pronouncement would indeed…
Just Give Me Jesus
“What do you want for Christmas?” my husband asked in preparation for his quick Christmas shopping trip. “Nothing you can buy,” I answered. He stopped at the door, his hand resting on the knob. He watched me as I tried to explain. It has been a long, hard year. Besides the emotional expenditure of situations…
Treasures Unseen
“For where your treasure is, there will be your heart also.” Luke 12:34 How do you respond to surprises? Words gushing like a waterfall? Stunned silence? Emotions erupting like a volcano? Mary’s response in both Luke 2:19 and 2:51b was silence. And her silence spoke volumes. In Luke 2:19, Mary had just received shepherds who…
Feeling Like a Fraud?
Ever feel like a fraud? A few years ago, I switched careers from nursing to teaching medicine to high school students. Before I accepted my teaching position, I had various volunteer teaching experiences. I had even homeschooled my own children. Yet, I didn’t see myself as a teacher. The first week of class proved more…
Blessed By Believing
“What verse has resonated with you recently?” asked my daughter, returning home from college. “Luke 1:45 has been on my mind because it has always haunted me,” I shared. “Blessed is she who has believed that the Lord would fulfill his promises to her!” Luke 1:45 (NIV) This verse in context is when Mary, pregnant…
One Stone At A Time
Sighing, the prophet surveyed the site before him. Never had he imagined the City of David would look like this: Desolated. Devastated. Destroyed. What was even worse was the poverty afflicting the people: Physical poverty. Emotional poverty. Spiritual poverty, How could this happen? Nehemiah knew God. He also knew the city needed rebuilt. This was…