Real women. Real stories. Real faith.
I feel a renewed joy tonight. As I lay in bed, I can't help but feel a grin come across my face a mile wide. I reflect on the words of a dear friend from last week. "The one thing." I'm coming out of a season that felt as if I were a train in… Continue reading The One Thing
The season is changing. Can you feel it? I'm not talking about the weather or the time of year. I'm talking the spiritual season. There is a season to sow and a season to reap. A season to weep and a season to dance. A season to keep and a season to discard. (Ecclesiastes 3)… Continue reading Changing Seasons
Hey, world! It's been a hot minute! Since I've last taken to the blog, so much has changed! I have changed. And God has done SO very much. I think I need just a moment to take that in. To breathe deep the faithfulness, the love, and the goodness of my God. Oh, how He… Continue reading A Journey to the Vision: The Birth of Generations ARISE
Hunger grows in the wilderness. Even in Egypt under oppression, the Hebrew people were well fed. In fact, when they came up out of Egypt and crossed the Red Sea into the wilderness, it was the food that they reminisced about. Maybe they'd romanticized it in hindsight. But in circling the wilderness, the Hebrew people… Continue reading Out of Egypt, Into the Wilderness, On to the Promise Land
I don't know if it is true of all writers, but I often don't think I have anything to say...or at least know how to say it...until I sit down to write it. I once read a quote by Flannery O'Conner VII that resonated so deeply with me that I scribbled it down and hung… Continue reading The ‘One Thing’
Sometimes I forget that peace and silence are not synonymous- especially in a house with three kids, a husband, and a dog. I've shared deeply in the past my struggle with anxiety. One thing that greatly contributes to my feelings of overwhelm, though, often tends to be noise and chaos. I easily feel anxious when… Continue reading Elusive Peace
"How will they preach unless they are sent? Just as it is written, 'How beautiful are the feet of those who bring good news of good things!'" (Romans 10:15, referencing Isaiah 52:7 NASB) Do you ever feel like you are just aimlessly roaming this earth, going about through life with no real sense of purpose?… Continue reading Beautiful Feet
There is something that captivates my heart. Something about a quaint and quiet life- tucked in the heart of the woods, with peaceful waters rolling through, fields bright with wildflowers, as babies and veggie-ripe gardens grow in the backyard. There is something about a hammock under a tree, clean laundry on the line outside, muddy… Continue reading Small Life, Big Vision
Have you ever just had to believe God for more? Maybe you've had a fractured relationship, like me, that you know isn't all that God desires for it to be. Did you believe Him for the more that our relationships are made for? The broken trust, the fractured hopes, the hurt feelings, the disregard or… Continue reading Repairer of Broken Walls
There used to be a day when writing was fun. It was the way that I connected to God, processed life, and connected with people through stories. It was my testimony and my mission field all in one. My ministry was words. And I loved it. Then I entered vocational ministry...i.e., I was hired at… Continue reading Just for Fun
So many times, I think to myself, it would just be so much easier if my kids would just quick obey and be done with things because I've said so. No one would be upset or frustrated. The tasks would be be completed more quickly so we can get to the "fun" stuff. But then… Continue reading Decision-Maker or Disciple?
We've all got our quirks, our vices, our kryptonite, our pet peeves. For me, the pet peeve is hairy socks. Hang in there with me. We've got a hairy beast of a dog. He's blonde and there is no getting around collecting his hair on your socks if you shall dare to choose to walk… Continue reading For the Love of Hairy Socks
After a solid three months not writing, God whispered, "Don't give up on this." He meant my writing. This morning, as I readied myself for a prayer meeting with our leadership team, again, the still small voice of God reminded me, "Get back to it." Then, as we sat praying for one another in our… Continue reading The Story on Your Heart
HOPE. Was it the word you thought it would be? This word keeps seeming to find me. It resurfaces wherever I look. It is as if God is telling me that this is what the world needs right now. They need a hope that is not found in political parties nor leaders. They need a… Continue reading The 4 Letter “H Word”
The world is for sure weary right now. People are worked up, pressed down, and their hopes for a radiant 2020 have been dashed, leaving them longing for more. In the Christmas season, during the waiting season of Advent, perhaps, if we lean in, we will find that there is more. There is more to… Continue reading The Deep Dig: An Advent Devotion
Psalm 37:5 (NASB) "Commit your way to the LORD,Trust also in Him, and He will do it." Both when Jesus was laid in the tomb, and when He was resurrected, there was an event that occurred. A stone was rolled. When He was laid in the tomb, the Romans soldiers sealed His grave by rolling… Continue reading PART 3: The Gift: Grave to Grace- A Walk Through Psalm 37- A Multi-Post Advent Series
Forewarning...TMI (too much information coming your way!)... I was laying in the bottom of the shower, because that's what I do...and the only five minutes alone I get three times a week! HA! Mom truth. So anyways, I was laying there, soaking in the scalding hot water because that's the way I like it. I… Continue reading Have a Good Laugh!
DO you remember "the dress"...the dress that divided a nation? People went crazy when a photo of this dress surfaced on the internet. It literally split a nation down the middle. How easily we are divided. One side raved that the dress was white and gold. The other side, black and blue. The interesting thing… Continue reading “The Dress”
Delight yourself in the Lord, and He will give you the desires of your heart. Psalm 37:4 Delight: Hebrew: from the word "anog"- meaning to be soft, delicate, dainty, pliable. To be pliable. That's a rather curious thought, don't you say? Now, more than ever, we are guarding ourselves against pliability. We are resistant to… Continue reading PART 2: I Want To Be Different- A Walk Through Psalm 37- A Multi-Post Advent Series
Psalm 37:3-11 3Trust in the LORD and do good; Dwell in the land and cultivate faithfulness. 4Delight yourself in the LORD; And He will give you the desires of your heart. 5Commit your way to the LORD, Trust also in Him, and He will do it. 6He will bring forth your righteousness as the light And your judgment as the… Continue reading PART 1: The Cultivation Conspiracy- A Walk Through Psalm 37- a Multi-Post Advent Series
What’s the best part of your 13-year-old son suddenly outgrowing you? I’ve recently found myself in this scenario pondering the answer to this very question. I’m not particularly “tall.” At only 5’1”, I knew it wouldn’t be long before it happened. But in six months, he has grown nearly 4 inches, surpassing his mama by… Continue reading The Weight of a Burdened Heart
What if... What if 2020 was not a wash? What if 2020 was not a waste? What if 2020 wasn't a year of perfect vision? What if 2020 wasn't all bad? Not so long ago, we all looked ahead to the year 2020 with the high hopes of a new year. We thought the ringing… Continue reading 2020: The Year That Wasn’t a Wash
The Apostle Paul surely knew how to make the most out of every opportunity. From him, I've learned to share the gospel whenever, wherever, and by knowing my audience well, delivering it in a way that they can easily understand. I've also learned from Paul that opportunities come by for us to also examine our… Continue reading Opportunity Awaits
What an impatience our instant gratification society has created within us. As I wait for the browser page to load, I grow impatient was the seconds pass. Yes, not minutes, but seconds. As the little circle swirls around, there is a build up in me that just does not want to wait. When Amazon Prime… Continue reading Browser Refreshing
Alert! Alert! May I have your attention please! A fire has been reported in the building! Alert! Alert! May I have your attention please! A fire has been reported in the building! Alert! Alert! May I have your attention please! A fire has been reported in the building! At midnight, as we slept soundly in… Continue reading Sound the Alarm
Every action has an equal and opposite reaction. Newton's third law of motion. Remember that from science class? I know not all of science has caught up to Scripture, but this one I think holds true. Everything we do, say, post, share, etc. does one of two things. It either draws us and those around… Continue reading Quiet Whispers
Recalculating...recalculating...recalculating. Can you hear your GPS? Make a U-Turn when possible. Recalculating. There may be 95 other ways to get where you are going or to do what you're trying to accomplish, but the only way that matters is God's way. Where are you going? What are you trying to do? That thing, that destination,… Continue reading Recalculating…
God speaks and we don't always understand. Sometimes, He says do this. And we wonder "why." But He just says, do this. We can't see ahead to understand why that thing that seems so far out of our comfort would be the very thing that He asks us to do. Sometimes, He sends a sign.… Continue reading Jumping Into the Riptide
In 2017, a Leonardo da Vinci masterpiece, "Salvator Mundi", known as Savior of the World, a depiction of Jesus robed in blue, sold to an anonymous buyer for 450.3 million dollars. A long series of tests and technological assessments were performed on the painting to establish the validity of the painting as an original work… Continue reading Authentic Masterpiece
As I sat in the front row of the church mini auditorium for day two of the Global Leadership Summit, I was brimming with anticipation for Lysa TerKeurst to take the screen. One of my favorite authors and speakers who ALWAYS brings "it". When it was her turn...she did NOT disappoint. Not that I was… Continue reading Stanky Mess
Scripture says the heart is deceitful. The motivations of our heart are selfish and prideful and self-centered. That's the result of the fall of man way back in the garden. We were created for more, though. We were created for community and relationship and love. With God and with His people. We were created for… Continue reading Letting Go to Find Your Rest
Word Filled Woman 