warm candlelight with flickering flame

Singing to Jesus by name in a suffering Christmas

We love the names of Jesus, don’t we? Christmas songs are filled with them, echoing God’s Word. They remind us of God’s unchanging character, on display in His incarnated person, God the Son.  This week, our playlist gift is sing-praying the names of Jesus, singing to Jesus by name in Read more

horseshoe bend photo

Soldier of Christ? Arise in and through our suffering!

In this week’s one-year anniversary of brain surgery, I am in awe of what our Lord and King has done. I’m alive! Hallelujah! Beloved in Christ, it’s far grander than His kind gift of so much physical healing. It’s way more holistic and weighty than that. I can only describe what Read more

an elderly man consoling a woman

Bringing our emotions to the feet of Jesus

God made us emotional beings, housed in a body with a cognitive brain that thinks and an emotional brain that simultaneously “feels.”  Beloved in Christ, God not only understands our emotions, but He created us with physical brains… that automatically have them.  Many faithful and mature children of God (e.g., Read more

an eagle flying in the sky

Lord, please give me “Be still, my soul” patience

As grief overwhelmed me, I lost my patience. Anger welled up and had to be honestly released with a shout. Shrouded in loss and shocked by my unusually loud reaction, I asked God to help me see what lay beneath my tear-full explosion.  My anguish had started with an unexpected Read more

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Keep. Yourself. In. the Love of God. Waiting.

Has God ever slowed you way down as you read His Word? His Spirit gently nudges me into this slow-motion encouragement, many days! One day, I was overwhelmed by my body’s pain alongside the incessantly fear-full noise of the news, the divisive slander of Christians against one another, and the Read more

person carrying child wearing white top

Releasing into joy, in my dread of suffering

Why do I assume that tomorrow will bring more suffering?  Even if it did, why would I assume that I couldn’t possess any joy?  Maybe I need to simply ask God for His Spirit’s promised fruit of joy, to release my imagined assumptions. Who am I to predict what tomorrow Read more

white clouds

The complete power of our Savior and Lord!

My Bible reading plan currently involves alternating between the books of Job and Revelation. This is tremendous encouragement as I deal with ongoing suffering and our enemy’s temptations. Just as with Job, when suffering is intense, we’re also dealing with spiritual warfare. For the next two weeks, I’m asking God Read more

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