Gaining a heart of wisdom
Because I am married to an unreasonably patient man, we hardly ever argue – except for when it comes to the Ascension. His (perhaps quite reasonable) conclusion from Acts chapter one is this: Jesus went up. The disciples looked up. Therefore, heaven is up. My (perhaps quite unreasonable) argument is that on that day when… Continue reading Rising in Grace and Glory
For Martin Luther's fifty-seventh birthday, his wife designed, commissioned, and then presented to him a carved doorway for their home. It's elegance incorporated numerous features that demonstrated Katharina's knowledge of and devotion to her husband; however, there is no way that she could have realized how completely appropriate her gift would be. Michelle DeRusha's biography… Continue reading Together through the Doorway of Marriage
It's nearly time. Even two weeks ago, standing thigh-deep in snow beside the bush, I could see that the buds had begun to swell large, and so it won't be long until I lop off some of the bush's waywardness and then arrange the bare branches in a vase of water. I will begin watching… Continue reading The Radical Simplicity of Looking Up
Ruth A. Tucker is a story teller. I have vivid and fond memories from my experience of reading her Dynamic Women of the Bible when it was released in 2014. As she unfurled and then analyzed the story of each Biblical woman, tiny shards of her own story would poke through the narrative fabric: an abusive husband, the humiliation… Continue reading No Sanction for Domestic Abuse
"What's that, Mum?" asked my son, pointing to a small plastic something-on-the- ground. "That's just a barrette," I replied, off-handedly. "What's a barrette?" he asked -- framing in one simple question the deeply entrenched boy-culture and the essence of the testosterone-laced air that I have breathed for the past two decades. With this as background,… Continue reading The Art of Being a Wife
"As Christian women, we desire to honor God by living countercultural lives that reflect the beauty of Christ and His gospel to our world . . ." These powerful words lifted from the True Woman Manifesto are a wake up call to women, an invitation to enter into a life based on truth, and to… Continue reading Divine Design
In matters of relationship, a teaspoonful of doing is worth more than a bushel- basket full of knowing. We've all read Dobson and Chapman and Eggerichs until we've become so accountable before God with all our knowledge that we are clearly without excuse. So, while it's become a tired cliché, it is no less true: … Continue reading 10 Words to Consider Before Becoming a Husband
About twenty-six years ago, a handsome young man in a tux stood before me and recited loving words of commitment that began like this: “Michele, joining my life with yours in the covenant of marriage . . .” And so our love story began with strong promises about loving and listening, respecting and revering. By… Continue reading A Love Like No Other
How has Gary Thomas sold half a million copies of a book about marriage that does not promise readers a happier marriage? No promise of six steps to more intimate pillow talk. No descriptions of three tips for more zip. The fact is that Sacred Marriage - The Revised Edition talks about the challenges and disappointments that… Continue reading Marriage: A Spiritual Discipline?
Twenty-five years of marriage have flown by. In many ways, my husband and I are not the same people who walked down the aisle in that big, beautiful church with pipe organ music and the aroma of gardenias in the air. Everything in our lives has changed -- except one thing. We are still working at our love.… Continue reading Enduring and Beautiful Marriage
Living Our Days 