You’re a work in progress!‘Until we all...become mature.’ Ephesians 4:13 NIVBirth and growth are different processes, both naturally and spiritually. There’s a big difference between being saved and being whole. One happens instantly, the other is the work of a lifetime. When God saves you, your spirit is immediately changed but your emotions, your appetites, and your attitudes still need working ...  Read More

Cut the cord‘On the day you were born your cord was not cut.’ Ezekiel 16:4 NIVAre you still tied to the things of your past? Are you still being fed emotionally by relationships that need to be severed? You’ll only cut the cord when you realize that you can get what you need from a better source. Paul speaks of ‘his power that is at work within us’ (Ephesians 3:20 NIV). What is that power? It’s th...  Read More

Where Is Our Hope?A powerful practice to help move forward in our pain is to let our mess become our message. From the first days following Ben’s death, I prayed that God would use my pain for good. Something in me knew that the only pain I could survive would be the kind that helped others survive their own.My purpose is to bring hope to all of us who live in a world filled with lemons on Friday....  Read More

Zechariah 2:1-5Then I lifted up my eyes and looked, and behold, there was a man with a measuring line in his hand.  So I said, "Where are you going?" And he said to me, "To measure Jerusalem, to see how wide it is and how long it is."  And behold, the angel who was speaking with me was going out, and another angel was coming out to meet him, and said to him, "Run, speak to that young man, saying, ...  Read More

Who Am I Now?We all have the human tendency to ask questions like “How long will my heart feel broken?” or “When will I be done grieving?” and “Who am I now?” We hate waiting. We long to get to a place of healing when we are hurting. And often along the way, we struggle to understand who we are in light of the changes we have grieved.Grief is messy, and healing is in no way instant. Time is crucia...  Read More

Where Is God?When fundamental parts of our lives are lost, when people and things we thought we’d never lose are suddenly gone, it’s natural to want answers. Why did this happen? Who’s to blame? What could I have done differently? And for many of us in the aftermath of traumatic change, we also want to know, Where is God? Wherever we are in our faith—secure, skeptical, or somewhere in between—suff...  Read More

Lemons on FridayWhen Ben and I got married, it was ultimately the most life-changing choice we would ever make. As we exchanged vows and rings my mind raced with pictures and hopes and dreams of what those words might mean. Sure, they would mean hardship, as every marriage experiences, but I expected to love and to cherish with death far, far off in the future. I didn’t expect the second half of t...  Read More

Opposition Leads to OpportunityScripture:  Luke 17:1Offenses are inevitable. No one is exempt. One way or another, we are all going to get offended, hurt, insulted, betrayed, cheated, shamed, violated or lose our pride.Since being offended is a Biblical fact, we must learn how to deal with it.Opposition can cause you to face things and do things you could not have done without the opposition. Oppo...  Read More

Zechariah 1:14-17 So the angel who was speaking with me said to me, "Proclaim, saying, 'Thus says the Lord of hosts, "I am exceedingly jealous for Jerusalem and Zion.  But I am very angry with the nations who are at ease; for while I was only a little angry, they furthered the disaster.  Therefore thus says the Lord, I will return to Jerusalem with compassion; My house will be built in it," declar...  Read More

The Dirtiest Battle = Your Greatest VictoryScripture:  2 Samuel 5:8So David and his men stood before the mountain. A wide area on top had been flattened. Huge walls surrounded the city. There was no way in.Then, David’s eyes fell on a water tunnel. This can also be described as a water shaft or a gutter. And David turned to his army and said, “First one who gets up the gutter . . .”Have you ever c...  Read More

Don’t Give Up on God Because He Never Gave Up on YouScripture:  Isaiah 42:16, Psalm 9:10God is not in the business of replacing damaged people. God is in the business of fixing damaged people. He does not want to get rid of us. He wants to change us. He wants to heal us. He wants to transform us. He wants us to live out the message of the cross.A story is told about a man parked on the side of a r...  Read More

Learn to Love Yourself FirstScripture:  Jeremiah 31:3-4God wants to restore you. He wants to offer you the ring of acceptance. He wants to reconcile you to the Kingdom. He wants to invite you to sit at His table. As it is written in Isaiah 61:7, “Instead of shame . . . you will enjoy a double share of honor.”Once we get ahold of the truth of grace, not only does it empower us to forgive and love o...  Read More