The email came on a Friday afternoon–an email I’d been waiting on for over a month… The email that would hold the answer to a dream I’d been nurturing for some time, and the answer would be a simple yes or no. When I saw it arrive in my phone’s inbox, I halted mid-stride in front of […]
When You’re Spun by Change and Weighed Down by Grief
This past month my friend’s mother dies suddenly, the Sauer family says goodbye to Ben, their brave four-year old cancer-fighter, and another friend cares for her husband in hospice, in what are sure to be his last days here on this earth. And they cling to the hope he’ll make it through Father’s day before […]
Why You Should Go See Mom’s Night Out Movie {Produced by Kevin Downes}
Five years ago, over seventy of us gathered for our 20-year high school reunion. And among those classmates was my friend, Kevin Downes. That night we caught up, as he shared all he’d been doing in the past 20 years, including writing and producing films with his brother Bobby. Kevin told about the coming release […]
How to Have More Contentment in Motherhood {Guest Post by Lisa-Jo Baker}
This coming weekend will mark my 18th year celebrating Mother’s Day as a mom. And while there have been seasons that passed like molasses off a spoon, and others which flew by like a speeding train, in the midst of it all, all of us mamas need more contentment. We need each other. To be seen. To […]
Rhinestone Jesus: How Your Yes Can Change the World
Sometimes I think Satan gets way too much credit. Like he’s omnipresent or omniscient or something. I hear people say they’re “under attack”, especially when they try to do something for God. And I don’t completely buy it. The truth is, when God asks us to do something, saying yes is hard. Many times He’s asking […]
When You Dare to BE in Community :: (in)RL 2014
It’s a scary thing to drive an hour alone and knock on a complete stranger’s door. Because who knows what you’ll find, when you meet on the other side of a computer screen? Maybe there’ll be cat hair on the couch and toilets with rings all the way around? Or maybe an attitude of pretense, […]
How God Uses our Messy Muddy Life
The more I read, the more I see how the Scriptures paint a portrait of a God who sees. A God who knows even me. Especially me. And who uses my life to paint His glory. He who is good and kind, just and righteous, divine and man. Acquainted with suffering and intimate with grief. […]
For When You’re Surprised by Motherhood {A Giveaway}
I still remember the first time I saw him. How that nurse picked him up in that striped hospital flannel and handed him to me like he was the sturdiest thing made. I’ll never forget the feeling–that overwhelming weight. Knowing there’d be no turning back, blended with a depth of love I’d never known existed. I […]
In the Aftermath of a Mighty Storm, We are Changed
It was an ordinary Sunday afternoon. That is until the storm began. The storm that wasn’t in our Southern CA forecast–the spring flash storm we weren’t even expecting. The sun was shining with a brilliant blue sky. And then the clouds rolled in, announcing the beginning–blocking the sun, and darkening the sky. Then the wind […]
The Way to Get Joy {And a Reminder: You’re Not Guilty Anymore}
She stands on that gigantic stage and accentuates with her arms to punctuate her points. And you can hear a pin drop in the room because at the core of each one of us, we are aching for joy. And she explains how it is possible. No matter what you’re facing, as long as thanks […]
