“Grief is such a weird, uncontrollable beast. You never know when or where or how it’s going to pop up and demand its due.” Rev leaned over the upstairs banister and read those words to me the other night from A Dream So Big, by Steve Peifer. As he shared the words above, tears dripped down…
Am I the only one who writes a post and then decides it doesn’t work? I’ve been thinking about how God pours out His goodness. How you and I pour out our hurts, fear, and confusion to God and He pours patience, grace, mercy, kindness, and love into us. The wonderful part . . ….
A very wise friend once said, “If everyone is annoying you and getting on your last nerve . . . you have to stop and think about the common denominator. Maybe the problem is you.” How’s your attitude? When I’m cranky and irritable it’s easy to blame everyone and everything. To look around and grumble…
You might be a hypocrite if: you expect God to forgive you but can’t forgive others. you point out the sins of others while ignoring your own sins. you hate anyone. you don’t think you’re as bad as ______________. If the log in your eye never keeps you from seeing the speck in someone else’s eye. Or…
Guilt. You’ve got it. You know, that thing the enemy uses to label you a failure . . . to hold you back and defeat you. Everyone has something maybe even several somethings. I thought about making a list of examples but that would only be a distraction. All that matters is what’s on your list. I…
God is good! You and I want to trust those words with everything in us . . . heart, mind, soul, and strength. But if you’re like me, you pray and ask God to help you trust Him completely and then something happens and worry is followed by a little doubt and you find yourself struggling—again….
You and I are relational. We crave connectedness. So, we will always attach to someone or something . . . maybe even several someones or somethings. Jesus called it being yoked. And once we become followers of Jesus, it’s up to us whether we are yoked to slavery or freedom. It is for freedom that…
Do you like getting gifts? Of course, you do. Who doesn’t? It’s normal for children to start making lists of the presents they want for their birthday or Christmas long before they can write. And many of us still have lists of things we want, just in case someone’s interested . . . decades later. You and…
I think my parents would say that for the most part, I was “a good girl” growing.” Whew! Don’t we want our children to be “good.” But what does being good really mean? If you’re like me, you think “being good” equals being obedient. Isn’t that what you’re looking for when you tell your children to…
If you’d known me growing up you would have seen a girl who could comfortably play the piano and organ in front of large groups of people, who could stand in front of groups and give presentations with little to no fear, and who thrived on memorizing lines and performing in plays and musicals. If…
Are you blessed and happy? Do you want to be? If you’re like me, you’re thinking . . . doesn’t everybody? Looking around it’s easy to draw the conclusion that happiness is the result of our circumstances and desires aligning. But Jesus answer to finding happiness is very different. How to be Blessed and Happy Very…
I’m a first-born rule follower. I like rules. I understand rules. Rules make sense. If you do A and B happens and you definitely don’t do X if you want to prevent Y from happening. It’s simple like math. Rules are black and white. And following the rules pleases people . . . especially parents, teachers,…
This year was going to be different. You wanted balance. Time to exercise. Time to read. Time to relax. Time to be still. God’s wants us to enjoy balance because it models His character. God put balance and order in creation. The earth is exactly the right distance from the sun, and has the perfect combination…
One of the hard parts about being still and knowing God is that you and I are accustomed to being busy. We like filling our days with activity and our minds with information. I’m busy doing and I love it. If I’m not doing . . . I’m sitting on the couch with the television on,…
You need stillness. It’s important for your faith and your health! But being still is almost impossible. It is for me and maybe it is for you too! With technology, appliances, entertainment, etc – noise is a constant in most homes, workplaces, and whatever method you use to get from one to the other. In…
When I began The Faith Project I had no idea where the adventure would lead me. In the first post of the year, I shared two basic commandments for the year: To grow in faith and love for God—Father, Son, and Holy Spirit; with a desire to be completely devoted to Him in heart, soul, mind,…
This has been a hard month. I knew it would be. Humility was hard. But for me, patience has been harder. It seems like I’ve been challenged and come up short again and again. So, if you’re struggling with where you fall on the patience scale, you are not alone! Here’s a quick recap of…
Ooh, you’re angry. You want to let them have it . . . a full-blown verbal attack. Or even better, you could tell your friends. Really, people should know. It could protect them in the future. And it would feel so good. Because . . . well, this was just wrong and you’re furious! I understand. I’ve been…
Norman Vincent Peale said, “Change your thoughts and you change your world.” I’m not sure I completely agree with that, but I do believe changing your thoughts will change your attitude and that will definitely change your view of the world. So… If you want to be more patient you have to stop thinking impatience. Things…
Home – the place you can let relax and be yourself. And because everyone is relaxed and just being themselves. Home is also the place where you need the most patience. Seriously . . . no one can try your patience like the people you live with. Isn’t it interesting that patience and kindness are the first words…
I don’t like to wait and I really don’t like to be late. Maybe you can relate. Waiting messes with plans and ruins schedules. And most of us are scheduled. Too much to do in too little time. That’s life. Busy. I was all set to start a post the other morning when our internet went down….
