I look at the list of assignments my daughter has, and I feel overwhelmed by the amount of work that needs to get done for the day. Blame it on the pandemic, on working from home, on the kids having a hard time doing school on the computer, but the list is long today because we didn’t get much done the last few days. Each week has brought new ...
The other day we made turkey-and-cheese sandwiches on sourdough bread and packed oranges and a plate of cookies my friend made into a cooler bag. We piled the five of us into our royal blue truck and went for a drive. Some local friends recently posted pictures on Facebook of a beautiful lake they found about an hour from our house, and I had to ...
Do not fear, for I am with you; do not be afraid, for I am your God. I will strengthen you; I will help you; I will hold on to you with my righteous right hand. Isaiah 41:10 (CSB) This is the promise for us today: God holds me when I am overwhelmed. There is just so much right now. Everyday there are new changes to how we are to behave and ...
In the ten and a half years I’ve written for (in)courage, never have I thought so much about how the world in general — and admittedly my world in particular — could change between the day I submit my words and the day you read them. Life under a shelter-at-home order feels a little like the five stages of grief but in no predictable order. My ...
Last week was spirit week for our elementary school, and the teachers were very clear: If this is stressful or overwhelming, scrap it. That’s basically how they’ve been with this whole new school-at-home thing, and I am so thankful. My kids understand that there's something in the air that they’ve never felt before. They see the masks at school ...
I have a confession: I usually hide my worries pretty well, but with COVID-19, sheltering in place, and “homeschooling,” my children have turned into 24/7 truth-tellers, picking up on my stress. I was sitting on the couch one day, scrolling through my phone, when eleven-year-old Caleb came over and said, “Mom, what’s wrong? You look so ...
Don’t worry about anything, but in everything, through prayer and petition with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus. Philippians 4:6-7 (CSB) Every month of 2020, we will feature the Love Over All theme verse on the first Sunday of the ...
I let my kids see me cry. It happened again on one of our daily family walks during the fourth week of quarantine. In these confining times, fresh air and moving our bodies is one way we keep tethering ourselves to hope and the gift of each other. My husband and I walked ahead as our three sons trailed behind us finding the best sticks and ...
Mothering may not look like what we thought it would look like. It doesn’t look like it does in the movies or TV shows. It doesn't look like most of our social media feeds or our friends’ lives or any version of what we thought it would look like at all. It may look like loving other people’s children. It may look like loving your neighbors', ...
I stopped counting the days since our stay-at-home mandate in California was put in place. It has been for many days. Throughout the past few weeks, I’ve experienced a wide range of emotions: shame, anxiety, guilt, and even apathy. I’ve screamed at children, cried in the shower, and had a million dance parties. I’ve cried over viral videos on ...
