Gaining a heart of wisdom
Sunday Scripture Conversations at our house tend to follow a pattern. We make a plan, and my husband assumes that all will be well. That's my cue to begin thinking about the details and coming up with at least five things that could (and probably will) go wrong. I've been honing my catastrophizing skills for… Continue reading How to Fight Fear and Anxiety by Hitting Your Mental Reset Button
Sunday Scripture My three married sons have chosen wisely, smart women who love God and love their husbands well. Therefore, my grandchildren have wise mothers who limit screen time and access to junk food. Humans, both big and small, develop an appetite, an acquired taste, for what's-good-for-them when what's-good-for-them is what they are given. As… Continue reading 4 Strategies to Help You Develop an Appetite for Reading the Bible
Here in rural Maine on an average Saturday, I might pull some weeds while I'm snipping crisp, early-morning lettuce leaves. There might be a carrot cake in the oven, a salad under construction on the counter, and a podcast playing in the background. Meanwhile, in Afghanistan, on that very same Saturday, a woman my age… Continue reading Join Me in this Heartfelt Prayer of Hope for a Hurting World
Sunday Scripture We hear the disclaimers after every major tragedy: "God had nothing to do with this! A good God would never have allowed it to happen." Trying to let God off the hook for the inexplicable and ignoring scripture's affirmation of God's sovereign control over life and death, some misguided God-followers even question the… Continue reading Are You Trying to Create God in Your Own Image?
What goals have you set for your spiritual formation this summer? Do you want to trust God's faithfulness more fully? Have you accumulated a pile of deeply challenging books to read? Maybe you've decided that you're sick and tired of feeling as if your prayer life needs work and are determined to focus on your… Continue reading Think Well | Why Is It Important for Me to Persevere in Clear Thinking?
Sunday Scripture It's been so long since I administered a standardized test to a first grader that I had almost forgotten the most crucial skill being assessed is a little boy's ability to sit still for twenty to thirty minutes at a time while attending to academic material. Even with frequent and very stimulating breaks--butterfly… Continue reading What Obstacles Stand in the Way of Your Daily Endurance Test?
I'm watching a miracle unfold in my family. Four sons, imperfectly parented, are growing into healthy, responsible, and strong young men. Two of them have even gone on to become imperfect parents themselves, and somehow, by grace, we just keep on forgiving one another for offenses, both big and small, with the understanding that family… Continue reading The Challenge of Faith and Forgiveness in a Christian Family
Sunday Scripture The taste of disillusionment is bitter, and few there are who have not experienced it at some point in life, for God often behaves in ways that puzzle us. His infrangible decrees leave us breathless and wondering, and while it's our default to view New Testament characters as cardboard cutouts, it's clear that… Continue reading What Does it Mean to Be Relentless?
Sunday Scripture We don’t know who he was because he didn’t sign his name. Was it fear that drove him to anonymity in an age of persecution? Or was it humility? Whoever wrote the letter we now refer to as “Hebrews” certainly knew the Old Testament scriptures, and in chapter eleven he’s connecting the dots… Continue reading Can I Walk by Faith if My Faith is Small?
It's tempting, LORD, to put my faith in your gifts Rather than in you alone. Good health enables early rising, satisfying productivity; Strong legs: a swift gait; Clarity of thought: a coherent paragraph; An understanding friend: the comfort of being known. I wonder though, Could I share the Story? Advance the Kingdom? Or even get… Continue reading Prayer for a New Year
Living Our Days 