One time up I opened about my struggle with hospitality. It was revealing and a little painful to be so transparent, and I kind of wanted to pretend it was a guest post by someone else, but the feedback I received made it seem like I’m not the only one who wants to grow in…
{Leaving the Room}
It’s nearly 7 a.m. when I close my Bible, put the notebook aside, drop the pen in the coffee mug that holds its mates on my desk. I could use fifteen more minutes, but my time is up. My kids are stirring across the hall, and the serenity of this pale blue room, dimly lit…
{I can’t read the Bible when the baby is crying.}
Maybe you’ve said these words before: “I can’t read the Bible when the baby is crying.” I know I have. When people tell me that their babies started sleeping through the night at six weeks old, I kind of want to punch them in the face. (The parents, not the babies.) If they tell me…
{the beauty of the dry spell}
(originally posted July 14, 2016) It snowed early that year, before Thanksgiving even. Every morning the skies were bleak and cold, and the trees had long given up any pretense of fall. Those frozen mornings when the sun didn’t have the will to shine brightly enough through the thick gauze of gray were reflected in…
{Bible Study Methods + VLOG demo}
If you’ve ever treated your Bible like a Magic 8 Ball, raise your hand. Flip your Bible open at random, point to a verse, read it. Make some sort of connection to your life. Close Bible. Walk away. Let’s all agree this is NOT the way the Bible was meant to be read. No shame…
{the morning person myth VLOG}
(Originally posted June 30, 2016) My husband, William, joins me for our very first VLOGGING experience. He has some strong feelings on why you should read the Bible in the morning. *I apologize for the abrupt ending of the video. I lost a few posts when I recently migrated my blog to a new web host,…
{know Him because we need Him}
Years ago, I sat in a small circle of believers as we shared our life experiences about studying the Bible. We all fidgeted a bit because it seemed we were collectively on the brink of disclosing something very secret and incriminating. One sweet woman in her 70’s confessed to the group, “I’ve been in church…
{every time I talk about TGCW16, I cry}
Confession: in nearly 13 years of ministry there’s only been one women’s conference I’ve attended that didn’t involve me speaking or leading worship. And that one time was over 10 years ago. So, when my dear friend Beth nominated me for The Gospel Coalition’s Send-a-Friend contest in March, I began to seriously consider going whether…
Do I need the Bible every day?
Do you need the Bible everyday? My short answer is YES. But maybe not why or in the way you might think. When I was in college, I worked part-time as a dental assistant. I met all kinds of people, and when you’re sitting in a room with a person while their mouth is getting…
{New Series: Knowing God in His Own Words}
It’s 5:52 a.m. when I finally drag myself out of bed. Without turning on any lights I shuffle to the kitchen and push the brew button on the coffee pot, then curl up on the couch under a quilt while the scent of coffee permeates the air. I doze for a minute or two while…