Darlene Brock

I am a “ponderer.” I see the tough things in my life, the lives around me, and the world at large and try to figure out why. Why is it so difficult? Why do we suffer injustice? Why is there so much heartache? Then I continue a mental debate that can span hours. It often creates a complete sadness that ends in me wishing for the day when this earth as it is would end. It really is a bit of a worthless exercise. I then have to accept that all of life’s answers aren’t mine and choose to surrender to one of the anchors of my faith, which is hope. But there were years when my choice of hope was laced with a vague […]

When hard times hit, women run headlong to the two places that provide strength: our family and our faith. These pillars may be central to our daily life, but it is during these seasons that they become even more significant. This was true of Hillary Scott, a member of the multiplatinum recording group, Lady Antebellum. It was a sudden miscarriage of her second pregnancy in the fall of 2015 that led Hillary to write “Thy Will” a song that offers a universal message of hope. Looking for peace when she felt none, she turned to her faith as well as her musical family: father Lang, mother Linda, sister Rylee, and her husband Chris. This was the beginning of what became so much more

I am an extremely fortunate mother to have two grown daughters whom I love dearly and go figure, they love me too. What’s even more amazing is that in this tenuous-relationship world in which we live, we like each other as well. They are both equally unique, incredibly strong, and on many days have provided me with a wealth of entertainment. But even more importantly, they are reminders of what’s important in life. My younger daughter has always had a river of emotion that runs deep. Her optimistic and lighthearted temperament at times eclipses the passion she holds deep in her heart. It’s not always obvious, but when it surfaces it comes out like a flood. On her seventh birthday I discovered she

I don’t know if you realize it, but the WWW in front of every web address stands for World Wide Web. Of course you do, but have you ever thought about the fact that it really is a web? Like the one woven by some unseen creature deviously setting a snare to catch an unsuspecting prey? I recently watched as a small lizard did his best to free himself from the threads created by a minuscule spider that was holding him hostage. Even though this creature was 1,000% larger than his captor, it seemed to be an impossible task (I did free him; I couldn’t continue to watch the struggle). This is particularly true in the world of social media. Not sure about you,

Women who desire to live their lives demonstrating unshakable faith are frequently found throwing around the anti-anxiety verses: “Be anxious for nothing… I can do all things through Christ… I will never leave you or forsake you…” (Philippians 4:6; Philippians 4:13; Hebrews 13:5). These appear as a quick fix for the swirling emotions that often decry the freedom we are told we find when we enter a relationship with Christ. As wonderful as those verses are, they aren’t a miraculous cure to our many anxious thoughts, or the paralyzing feelings that surround us. This often leads to defeat and discouragement. Surely we must not have enough faith or are in some way an inferior Christian. Even if we conquer one layer of anxiety, embracing