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What Is God Doing in My Life? 4 Truths About Trials
This morning, I was startled to find the wood line painted grey. Nevertheless, the bleak scene matched the state of my soul. I sat by the window and wondered, What is God doing in my life? Above the hardwoods, a lavender cloud arched its back into the shape of a question mark. Perhaps the heavens were questioning God’s purposes as well. Later in the day, I took a walk beneath the naked arms of the maples, oaks, and sycamores. I let my mind trace the footprints of a handful of recent disappointments—disappointments that felt far heavier than a dismal shift of seasons. I counted the losses, stared down some shattered…
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8 Bible Verses About Change and Transition
The cobalt skies have faded to grey, and aside from a few crumpled leaves, the poplar tree beside our house has shed her summer foliage. Most of the leaves are scattered on the deck in shades of burnt sienna, and I don’t have the heart to sweep them away just yet. I’ve never been great at handling change. I pull out my Bible in search of a few encouraging Bible verses about change and transition in life. Today, I want to hold on to lingering twilight, campfires in the yard, and supper on the deck. Everything within me wants to hold onto barefoot water fights and footraces around a flourishing…
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Learning to Be Still With God When Life Is Full
With each passing day, the vibrance of autumn is lost to the sleepy beige of winter. On a cloudy evening, I mourn the loss as I sit in the woods and inhale the pungent scent of fallen leaves. Pulling out my Bible, I flip to a familiar Psalm. It reads, “Be still and know that I am God” (Psalm 46:10). I’ve been learning to be still with God for decades and have yet to master the practice. My mind has been racing again lately, and silencing my thoughts today feels next to impossible. Instead of being critical of my racing mind, I am kind to myself today. I lean against…
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How to Memorize Scripture More Consistently: 3 Tips to Help You
Do you want to be more consistent about spending time with God or learn how to memorize Scripture? I pray that this glimpse into our family’s rhythms will inspire and equip you to memorize God’s Word in a way that works for you. Welcome to our living room. How to Memorize Scripture: 3 Tips to Help You Morning comes softly this time of year. Today, it came with ash-colored cumulus clouds spilling over the horizon like breakers rolling onto a sandy shoreline. The treeline was flecked with yellows and oranges where the maples had surrendered to the season. After a few minutes by the window, I gathered the kids in…
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3 Ways to Have Life-Changing Quiet Time With God
Last week, I spilled a handful of birdseed on the deck, and I’ve been watching cardinals and house sparrows clean it up for days. The scene is a daily reminder of one of Jesus’ parables, and I’ve been pondering it daily during my morning quiet time with God. Here are Jesus’ words: “A farmer went out to sow his seed. As he was scattering the seed, some fell along the path, and the birds came and ate it up. Some fell on rocky places, where it did not have much soil. It sprang up quickly, because the soil was shallow. But when the sun came up, the plants were scorched, and they withered…
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God Cares About You: 10 Bible Verses to Stand on in Tough Times
Yesterday, I spent what felt like wasted time trying to find a metaphor for the blue sky that opened wide all around us when we traveled to Wyoming. I even searched for a fitting simile online. Sadly, comparisons to robins’ eggs and soldiers’ uniforms didn’t capture what happened in my heart when the clouds opened wide, Elk Mountain smiled down on us with snowy slopes, and the cold springtime wind sent us hustling to find our jackets. This morning, I opened Luci Shaw’s book of poetry, and today’s poem caught my breath. It was called “God speaks in blue.” God Cares About You Luci offered every metaphor I could have…
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15 Scriptures to Destroy the Works of the Enemy
Are you searching for powerful Scriptures to destroy the works of the enemy? Let’s dig into God’s Word for 15 powerful Bible verses to help you overcome spiritual attacks. Speak these verses out loud when you sense you are under attack. Satan cannot read our minds, but he submits to the authority of God’s Word. Scriptures to Destroy the Works of the Enemy The year I started writing words for the world to read, things began falling to pieces all around us. The kids were constantly rundown with various viruses. There were financial strains, serious health scares, and much more. We faced spiritual attacks without reprieve, and we were worn…
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Beauty in Brokenness: 7 Insights for Challenging Times
The first storm of fall comes with gusty gales and breaks loose the brittle branches and untethered leaves. I have a deep sense of my own brokenness as the leaves scatter across the yard, and a question stirs in my heart: How do you turn to God and find beauty in brokenness when life is hard? Beauty in Brokenness Perhaps it comes with remembering the ways God uses our brokenness. The world around us tells us to avoid suffering, failure, and brokenness. However, Jesus offers a different invitation. He invites us to embrace suffering, failure, and brokenness. We cannot become spiritually mature without adversity. This truth is difficult to swallow,…
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Feeling Defeated? 5 Scriptures on Overcoming Discouragement
Outside the window, the goldenrod fields have shifted from emerald to buttery gold. Frost will come soon, and any hint of color will be swallowed up by the monochrome beige of winter. I open my Bible in search of Scriptures on overcoming discouragement because I sense I’ll need them throughout the long months ahead. Perhaps you need these words, too. Maybe you’re facing an uncertain future or feeling defeated in some area of your life today. Regardless of what your discouragement looks like, let’s soak in these truths together today. Scriptures on Overcoming Discouragement 1. “Behold, the Lord’s hand is not so short that it cannot save; nor is His ear…
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How to Let Go and Let God: 5 Practical Ways to Surrender
The little one sits beneath a tall row of golden cone flowers. Ten feet tall, they tower like trees with vibrant sunny heads. As my boy throws stones into the dark water of Wolf Creek’s pools, I take a moment to consider how to let go and let God take control of my life. Like a child heaving small boulders into a lazy creek, I want to learn to cast my cares onto the Lord. I want to learn how to let my concerns rest with him instead of wading into the waters of doubt and picking them up again. Most of us like the idea of giving God control;…