Gaining a heart of wisdom
Roots and wings are the gifts Christian parents pass on to our children. We establish rules, give them responsibilities that build confidence and skill, and water those deep roots with lots of love and prayer, knowing that strengthening wings will soon carry our children away from home, out of reach of our influence and our protection. In my prayers for the four young men who are so close to my heart, I’m taking my cues from the book of Philippians.
Sometimes the words of scripture seem to be written in bold type or inscribed on an envelope personally addressed to me. Even the verses about godly mothering and the warnings to contentious wives don't hold a candle to Jesus's cautionary words to teachers in the Sermon on the Mount...
Whatever time in your family’s life feels like mud season to you, don’t let yourself get stuck! Turn your frustration and anxiety into arrow prayers, and remind your heart that there is no mess too big for God to clean up.
When Jesus encountered the Samarian woman at the well in Sychar, their conversation about water quickly became a conversation about thirst. Her life was leaving her thirsty, and even though she was the person holding the water jar, she realized that Jesus was drawing from a well from which she had never drawn. His words,… Continue reading Genuine Character Leads to Influence: Does Your Life Make People Thirsty?
To live like a Christian, sometimes we have to stand on our heads. A biblical worldview is the polar opposite of the prevailing culture in which straw is treated like gold and everyone can be "right"—even if it's logically impossible.
For everyone, seasoned believer or confirmed pagan, it’s a matter of trust, because every day is a new opportunity to hand ourselves over to God. So… let me ask you: Are you trusting in Jesus?
How’s YOUR relationship with the discipline of silence? Twice in Psalm 62, David exhorts his own soul to “wait in silence,” and 21st-century believers need to have the same conversation with our souls.
Maybe I haven't been listening carefully, but I don't recall ever hearing someone say, "It was only after my huge success that I finally got my priorities straight. It was only after the big book deal and the first million in the bank that I cried out to God with sincerity." Isn't it true that… Continue reading The Gift of Grace that Grows from Our Challenges
Happy Easter! We celebrate this holiday in the Western world with ham dinners and joyful anthems. The nod-to-Godders dust off their Sunday best for their annual hour in the pew, and children brave the barely-spring temperatures to go in search of eggs filled witih slightly frozen jelly beans and marshmellow peeps. If you travel in… Continue reading Happy Easter! Now Go and Practice Resurrection
When I listen with just my ears, my heart can be ten thousand miles away. Just ask my grandchildren. They know the difference. “Bam, LOOK!” they demand until I turn my face toward the block structure, the moth in the jar, or the crayoned masterpiece. A woman on a mission, I need words tattooed on… Continue reading Experience (and Embody!) the Miracle of God’s Presence
Living Our Days 