faith
/fāTH/
Belief in a personal and faithful God who loves us unconditionally; a source of hope and confidence when you feel there is none; the assurance that there is someone greater than you who not only cares but wants to be part of your life
More often than not, if my change is only a few cents, I don’t wait around long enough for the cashier to hand me my pennies. If change falls out of my pocket or purse, I occasionally don’t bother to bend over to pick
As our friends get older, which unavoidably means we’re getting older too, we find we’re welcoming many of them into the Hurting Parents Club. “You’re late,” we sometimes want to say, or “What took you so long?” We don’t say these things out loud
The surgeries started in her early 20s, and for the next 10 years, 12 would follow. The scars on her abdomen ran from a few inches above her belly button to pelvic bone and from hip to hip. She often joked that it looked
From where do you derive your self-worth? Is it in the busyness of your job, where you clock up to 60 hours a week? Maybe it’s in your doting husband and your three smart, well-mannered children. Or, on the other side of the spectrum,
When you are 22, you underestimate the post office man. High on the aurora of your independence, you don’t realize you’re forging a lifelong bond with an elderly man who calls his office “The Pickle Jar.” Roger ran the post office at my seminary.
Each day, we wake up and set out to do some sort of work. For many, we spend from 8ish to 5ish doing our assigned duties to earn a living. Some may find a deeper purpose and a calling in the position that they
A few years ago, my husband joined a men’s group called “F3.” The “Fs” stand for faith, fellowship and fitness. Each time a new guy joins the group, the rest of the men ask some questions to get to know him a bit, and
On a recent Sunday night, I collected a few weekend photos, hoping to post about the needed fusion of fun and rest, community and solitude. Really, I thought it was charming. But then, in the blink of an eye, a phone call shattered this
I did not have an imaginary friend when I was a little girl, but I had something else that followed me around for as far back as I can remember: shame. Shame has been along for the ride for as long as I have
My father sold space when I was small. I couldn’t comprehend pharmaceutical advertising, and I told my little friends he was a “space man.” What mattered was that his calling carried him great distances. He came home with love offerings: a San Diego Zoo
The presence of God upon the earth did not begin with Jesus’ birth. Like fingertips brushing a page of braille, we can trace the presence of God from the very beginning. God, walking in the Garden in the cool of the night. God, speaking
Honor is the respect, trust, and confidence given to a person, earned by the character exhibited through the life they lived—the outgrowth of living a life of grace. Not easily gained nor easily bestowed. There is one lady that exhibited these qualities in life,
Christmas is days away and I am so excited about sharing this special day with my husband and family. The year started as the previous. A time of anticipation, yet each day filled with the comfortable routine of the past. Until a burning pain
Marriage is not a Hallmark movie. If you’ve been married for more than 5 minutes, you were probably like, “Duh.” But do you have single friends? Do you remember all the lofty ideas you had before you got married? Last Christmas, I went to
I was having one of those “discussions” with myself the other day, the kind where you are mediating an internal debate. There is no one else privy to the conversation; it is merely you talking to you. I’m one of those people whose facial
The publishing journey isn’t easy. I’ve had 20+ years of rejections and not-good-enoughs and you’ll-never-be-enoughs. Folders with “not quite” on business letterheads and saved voicemails of “not this time.” “Not you,” says the agent, the editor, the reporter. Not now. I’ve had publishers tell
It happens at the end of every day. She hears him before I do, stands at the door, and stares with fixed concentration. By the time I hear his footsteps, her body shutters with anticipation. It’s as if every day is Christmas and he
