In this season of social distancing, self-quarantining, and the silencing of our schedules, maybe the very thing we’ve desired -- to hear God speak -- is being given to each of us in a manner none of us preferred or saw coming. One of the things every believer longs for is to hear God’s voice clearly. Is that true of you as it is for me? I ...
The Lord will fight for you; you need only to be still. Exodus 14:14 (NIV) Here's the promise for us today: God will fight for me when I just can’t anymore. As the social distancing continues, we're becoming more weary. We were made for human connection through presence, and the lack of it has caused grief and anxiety and anger for the loss of ...
When the medical drama ER aired in the 90s, I had an infant and a two-year-old. I remember lying on our sofa nursing my son -- right side, left side, right side, left -- through ER, the news and, on occasional late nights, Leno and Letterman. (Being a human pacifier was a small price to pay for a baby who slept through the night.) Anthony ...
Overwhelmed by sadness, I shut my laptop and my eyes. My chest is heavy with grief and fear. Although I planned to hop on Facebook for a few minutes to check on friends and family, my screen quickly filled with news that made my soul ache. A friend shared a post from a friend whose husband has COVID-19 and is alone fighting for his life in the ...
I will bless the Lord who counsels me— even at night when my thoughts trouble me. I always let the Lord guide me. Because he is at my right hand, I will not be shaken. Therefore my heart is glad and my whole being rejoices; my body also rests securely. Psalm 16:7-9 (CSB) We say we're doing fine, and sometimes, we're busy enough during the ...
This grown woman was hard as rock -- an adult mean girl. Rude and disrespectful, hurtful and heartbreaking, her actions were made worse because of her target – her own mother. “She yells at her,” my friend said. “Her mom has Alzheimer’s, and when the mom forgets things or does something ‘wrong,’ her daughter just lets her have it, putting her down, ...
It was just another day on Twitter. My feed, once populated with discussions on publishing, theology, and the upcoming election, was nothing but a dead scroll of COVID-19 updates. The rising confirmed cases. Celebrities who had contracted the virus. How to stay sane while quarantined. Some of the things I read were helpful. But other spaces of the ...
We are the moms who hug, dance, and snuggle. We are the moms who get overwhelmed, whose snarls sometimes come easier than our smiles. We are the moms who live in the push-pull of exhaustion and joy, in the tumultuous world of feelings and guilt and giving all of ourselves. We are the moms who pray our children will fly while a tiny part of our ...
Let us then approach God’s throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need. Hebrews 4:16 (NIV) Here's the promise for today: God will help me in my time of need. The smallest, simplest of prayers we can pray right now is Help, God. Our cry for help doesn't fall on deaf ears and a ...
I thought I was fine. Sure, the whole world seems to have turned upside down on itself over the past month. And yes, having four kids home all day, every day, while two grown-ups try to work and manage homework isn't ideal. And, yes, I’ve been a little under the weather -- likely a random virus, nothing serious. But I'm holed up at home to be on ...
