{Photo by Jeremy Bishop on Unsplash } In the beginning of Becoming MomStrong, author Heidi St. John writes, “Mothers today need the wisdom of Solomon and the courage of Esther.” If you're unfamiliar with The Bible, this statement won't make sense. And I'll be the first to affirm your fears if you don't know who people are in Scripture - [...]
Open any of my Bibles and not a single one is a Red Letter edition. Red Letter Bibles are printed with Jesus's words in red ink. I won't get into the argument of whether or not they are quotes of Christ, but I respect context and honor its value for studying Scripture. A major component [...]
Lent begins next Wednesday, March 1 but I've been in planning mode for several months. While most who observe Lent associate it with sin, darkness, ashes, and sacrifice, I'm taking a different approach by diving into BELOVED: 40 Days in the Gospel of John by Margaret Feinberg. John is one of my favorite books in [...]
I've had so many questions for God lately: Will that person return to church? Will that person get pregnant? Will that job opportunity come to fruition? What effects will General Conference have on local churches? Are my friends in Haiti and Jerusalem safe? Will I be a strong leader this summer? Will that person get another [...]
What is so good about Good Friday? How can anything good come from something so bad? Today is Good Friday, perhaps the most significant event in the history of the world. It's a day filled with somber worship in dark spaces, dreadful songs, and Scripture passages of death, pain, suffering, and humiliation of an innocent man. The cross, a symbolic representation of God's unconditional love (vertical [...]
I'm not proud of the day I lost my marbles and yelled at my toddler son, but I admit it happened. I was still reeling from our errand-running trip and his fussiness through the book store. I knew he was hungry, he hadn't eaten much breakfast and it was well past noon, and I had to check ONE. MORE. [...]
Kamden and I have been enjoying the beautiful weather by treasure hunting in the yard and driveway. After an hour of playful discovery and excavation, Kamden had a pile of rocks and placed each one on the porch rail. While Kamden examined his treasures, I remembered a recent Bible study lesson on spiritual gifts. To the eye, Kamden's rocks were [...]
The words worship, study, and serve came to me during a recent workshop at church where we (a team of 40 worship administrators, team leaders, and laity volunteers) created a purpose statement. It was a productive (and exhausting) day full of brainstorming and collaborating and I enjoyed it immensely. As I read the new purpose [...]
Folks at the fitness center where I exercise are quite concerned with my safety, and it has nothing to do with buckets of sweat pouring off of me. It seems like every time I am on the treadmill or elliptical machine, I'm jotting notes on a piece of paper. The habit formed months ago when I was listening [...]
I'm not much of a daredevil, adventure seeker, or risk taker. I'm not an adrenaline junkie and I don't get 'high' from thrills like skydiving or bungee jumping. The most exciting things I've done include screaming on roller coasters at Six Flags, riding a camel in Jerusalem, and having a baby. Some people might say I'm boring. I suspect [...]