Transformation
Encouragement on how life's trials and struggles can lead to the transformation that will shape your heart to be more like Christ, bring greater joy, and usher in the fulfillment you crave.
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Why Dying to Self Is the Gateway to the Fullest Kind of Life
A vase of salmon-colored zinnias rests on the dining room table the day my friend speaks the words. She tells me motherhood will be an adventure in dying to self. I’m eight months pregnant with our first child, and my friend’s words aren’t at all encouraging. I’ve been sick for eight months. I feel like I’ve died a thousand times throughout this pregnancy. Imagining life getting worse before it gets better is nearly enough to send me over the edge. I smile politely and pray my friend is wrong. Ten years later . . . That conversation took place more than ten years ago. As I reflect on the past decade,…
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14 Free Devotional Books to Help You Grow With God
Are you ready to develop a deeper, life-giving relationship with God? My vision is to provide tools to help you encounter God in your daily life. For this reason, I have compiled a list of free devotional books to help you draw close to God’s heart. The first two books on this list are free as eBooks with the Kindle Unlimited plan (you can sign up for a free three-month trial if you do not have the plan) and also available to purchase in print. The remainder of the list is available to download for free with just one click, no plan is required. I pray these books help you…
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A Surprising Reason You Might Feel Spiritually Stagnant
Winter wind sweeps white over grey, and the fields once so luxuriant with farmers’ crops are beige with sleep. It seems the whole world has grown spiritually stagnant in its own quiet way. I remember the sun-splashed fields of goldenrod as I read beside the window. Some deep part of me feels stagnant as well. I want to be vibrant and faith-filled, but we’ve shifted into a season of simply trying to put one foot in front of the other with each passing day. How to Shake up Your Spiritually Stagnant Places I pull out Dr. Robert Mullholland’s book Invitation to a Journey as I sit by the window. He…
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Are You the Person You Want to Be in This World?
I drive ten minutes to the North Country Trail for an hour of hiking beneath the naked arms of the hardwoods. My soul finds space to breathe here. As I walk, I consider whether I’m living the life I long to live. It’s one of those days when you start wondering if you’re really being the person you want to be or if you’re just going through the motions in survival mode and hoping no one gets hurt. Are You the Person You Want to Be? I was feeling hopeful that summer evening, like summer would never end and cold west winds would never sweep across the bare boards of…
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How to Let God Lead You When Your Plans Fall Apart
Snow falls like a quiet kind of awakening, and when I listen closely, I can hear the heavy flakes gathering. I stand among the marmalade beech leaves as they cling to finger-like branches, waving at the dusk like these chilling grey days are not only expected but welcomed. Maybe the beech leaves have learned the secret about how to let God lead you when the season doesn’t unfold with the lush vivacity you expected. I stare at them blankly. I’m having a hard time agreeing with their cheerful heavenward waving. Winter drains the life from my veins here in the hills of the northeast. My body craves sunlight in the…
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3 Reasons to Create Space to See the Big Picture in Your Life
It’s a quiet Wednesday evening, and I return home with a truckload of groceries to find an empty house. After stowing the food in the cupboards, I slip to the deck and discover my family playing in the backyard. They are laughing, wrestling, and chasing the beagles across the wilted wildflower fields. Standing on the deck unnoticed feels like a rare invitation to step back and truly see the big picture of my life from afar. I’m sure other moms can relate: Somehow, the kids are surprisingly cuter when you watch them from afar, removed from disciplinarian responsibilities, and momentarily free from the demands of meeting everyone’s varied needs. This…
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How to Find Freedom From Your Secret Sins
There is frost on the once-lavender heads of the Canada thistle today. I sit at the window with intentions to soak in God’s restorative presence, but what settles upon me sends a chill down the nape of my neck, like frost on a clear winter dawn. The chill is my body’s response to the reality that the secret sins of my life are not hidden from the One who paints the dawn with shimmering ice. Most of us have them—those secret sins we don’t mention at the prayer gatherings, burying them deeper and speaking of more socially acceptable sins like yelling at our kids or filling our schedules to the…
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How to Savor Life and Find Deeper Joy in the Ordinary
I take my bike to the open road at the end of a too-long day just to feel the air brush up against my skin. I want the breeze to carry my cares across the hay fields, where they might get lost and tangled in the dormant silage stubble. I’m not pondering how to savor life as I speed down the road; mostly, I’m embracing how good it feels to take a break from the chaos of our energy-filled home. I’m three miles into my 12-mile route when I see it. There’s a balloon flogging in the wind, tied to a small headstone in the little country cemetery. It reads,…
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Living in the Presence of God: How to Walk With Him
Most mornings, I sit beside our dining room window as first light ascends from behind the eastern tree line. I sit here to get my bearings at the start of each new day. I also sit here because this practice is teaching me about living in the presence of God. I’ve learned that when I begin the day with a few quiet moments spent seeking God’s face, I’m more attuned to his presence throughout the remainder of the day as well. Living in the Presence of God This morning is overcast. There are chickadees at the bird feeder; the colorful songbirds of summer are gone. I watch the tiny birds…
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Finding Rest in God: How to Create Space
The tamaracks are losing their needles again. They fall like golden flecks of rain, a gift from the Father of heavenly lights. I stop in the middle of the country road and let one fall into my open palm. I’m here because finding rest in God often comes most naturally to me beneath open skies. I’ve been longing for a touch from heaven lately, and I’m revisiting an experiment I tried a while back. It’s an experiment in being intentional about seeking God beneath open skies for just a few minutes each day. Finding Rest in God I need space for this weary and burdened soul to stretch heavenward with…