When your marriage is on the rocks, it’s easy to lose hope. But here are 4 important truths to hold onto to not lose heart.
Is Your Marriage on the Rocks? 4 Things To Remember (for FamilyLife.com)
2022: Making Death Mentionable Again.
Photo by RODNAE Productions on Pexels.com I considered making "death" my word of the year for 2022. "Morbid much?" you may think to yourself and consider clicking away. Don't worry, I'm choosing "alive" instead. But I almost chose death because I'm realizing that thinking more about death would help me live better. My dear friend, …
It Takes a Village: 3 Reasons to Parent in Community (for FamilyLife.com)
Photo by Kaboompics .com on Pexels.com If you came to my house and listened to me parent, you’d hear several things I’ve robbed and duplicated from my village. My kids are called “lovey,” and I say, “That was kind,” instead of “nice” because of my friend Erin. “If you choose to disobey, do things go …
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6 Prayers for Marriage When You Need a Miracle (for FamilyLife.com)
Photo by Michelle Leman on Pexels.com When I tell the story of God pursuing me, I usually tell how He miraculously answered my prayers for marriage … my parents’. My parents’ marriage was often a battleground, the “D” word (divorce) brought up often. The summer before my 7th grade year, it felt inevitable. I headed off …
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The Good News for an Unhappy Marriage (for FamilyLife.com)
An unhappy marriage is a form of suffering. But while culture suggests we avoid suffering at all cost, Scripture offers a different take.
Breathing Toward Freedom
I breathe in God's graceI breathe out God's loveSit for a sec to remember thatYou love me becauseYou love me Me, who chooses 'perfection' over freedomWho changes her color like a chameleonMe, who alternately struts and hidesfumes and criesnumbs and chases highs I try so hardI'm so tired of trying(I even try to stop trying)But …
Stranger Things Holidays: Like Home Alone, But Without the Feel-Good Ending
When my firstborn daughter was one, we moved approximately 8,000 lonely miles from all our friends and family. After 32 hours of travel, we arrived to our new country, on her first birthday (we did celebrate that occasion with loved ones before we left). Her birthday falls on Halloween, so we left our home country …
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Grief at Christmas: Where God Meets Us (for FamilyLife.com)
If grief is a mighty river, most of us live the majority of our days from the safety of the shore, where the occasional strong wave laps at our toes. But inevitably, at some point in our lives, we’ll find ourselves in over our heads, choking on grief’s bitter water and grasping for air. Our …
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4 Ways to Stop Toxic Thoughts During the Holidays (for FamilyLife.com)
The holidays are stressful. Schedules and to-do lists are packed, we see people we don’t often see (like your cousin’s father-in-law’s nephew), and there’s pressure to make everything magical for everyone. And while there are plenty of things vying for our mental and emotional attention, toxic thoughts don’t need to be one of them. What …
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Day 32: Pen
The family happened to be all occupied. With what, I’m not sure, but it was calm and I decided to try slipping onto the porch without being missed. I grabbed a few quick supplies: drink, phone (always), book, and pencil and headed out to the swing camp chair. The pencil -- I’m pretty sure my …
hope for the sojourn 