-
3 Steps to Take When You’re Struggling With Life
I wrote an entire article with a small child on my back last week. Curious George was talking about birthday parties for the twentieth time in the week on the TV, and I typed while my own little monkey rested behind me on my back. No part of me wants to admit that I’m struggling with life in this season, but there are days . . . Later in the day, I longed for a reprieve, and I went to the basement for some time on the treadmill. Silence. Just the rhythmic rolling of the tread gliding over hard plastic. It felt like an escape. In less than five minutes,…
-
6 Healing Bible Verses for a Broken Heart
We all face heartache in life. When these times come, it can be difficult to know where to turn. During these moments, an invitation always awaits: We can turn to the One who always understands. Today, we’ll explore six Bible verses for a broken heart and soak in God’s truth for our painful moments. Bible Verses for a Broken Heart Years ago, moments after receiving the shocking news that a close loved one had passed away, an acquaintance blurted, “Don’t be sad. God will use this for good.” I wanted to say, “I know that, but can you just let me be sad for three minutes here instead of spouting…
-
4 Things to Do When You Feel Helpless
I remember the way the shadows danced on the walls as I held her through the night, the ulcers in her mouth burning with a relentlessness that made sleep hard to find. I’d bring her to the bed and let her whimper in my arms as her three-year-old body slipped in and out of sleep, and it felt like something in me just might tear wide open. And what in the world are you supposed to do when you feel helpless over the situations that matter most in your life? It was a medical condition that shaped our lives for over a year, and most of the time we felt…
-
5 Bible Verses About Waiting Patiently for God’s Perfect Timing
It’s a cloudy Monday morning when I open my Bible in search of Bible verses about waiting patiently for God’s perfect timing. Beside me, the amaryllis has burst into full bloom. It bows low under the weight of its heavy blossom. After all of this waiting for it to bloom, I wonder if the blossom might crush it. I watch the amaryllis become its fullest self, and I wonder about my own growth. Perhaps this recent season of waiting on God has been more purposeful than I’ve imagined. Maybe God knows that if I bloom before I’m ready, the weight of it will crush me. Nevertheless, I’m tired of waiting.…
-
4 Prayers for Hope and Peace in Difficult Times
I’m sorting through my eight-year-old’s backpack when I hear the words echo from the TV in the living room. Another shooting. Fatalities. Children running for safety with their arms stretched in the air. Bowing my head at the table, I turn to the Lord with urgent prayers for hope and peace in this broken world. 4 Prayers for Hope and Peace We’re all facing the consequences of living in a fallen world. We all face dark days and troubled times. After a few minutes of prayer, I think about this as I set the homework on the dining room table and hand my sweet girl a snack. My mind drifts…
-
5 Bible Verses for Strength and Healing
We watch chickadees flutter above the deck, and the snow melts all over again for the sixth time this winter. Just when we start to believe things are looking warmer, a bitter north wind descends and everything alive turns back to ice again. I open my Bible in search of Bible verses for strength and healing at the end of this long season. 5 Bible Verses for Strength and Healing The storms just keep rolling in, one right after another, and I wrap our little boy in a blanket on my lap as we watch the chickadees out the window. I find that in winter, I like to place my…
-
Thanksgiving Encouragement for When Thanksgiving Is Hard
The first rays of morning sunlight stretch through the frosted windowpane. For an instant, I forget that it’s Thanksgiving day. On this day when much of the world celebrates, I could use some Thanksgiving encouragement for my hurting heart. Maybe Thanksgiving is hard for you this year, too. You want to embrace this season and give thanks for the gifts in your life, but giving thanks just isn’t cutting it. If this is your story today, I invite you to join me as we stand on encouraging words amid our discouragement. Thanksgiving Encouragement for the Hurting What do we do when our worlds fall apart and the holidays suddenly hurt?…
-
Why Struggles in Life Are Some of God’s Greatest Gifts
“We often overlook the fact that struggles in life are some of God’s greatest gifts,” my mentor tells me as we talk on the phone on a warm autumn evening. I know she’s right, but I don’t want to hear it. Life has been hard lately, and I feel like these struggles are suffocating me. I’ve been wrestling with unanswered prayers and processing some difficult disappointments. I find it hard to believe that these struggles are God’s gifts. Struggles in Life Most likely, you have a few struggles in life, too. Maybe you’re praying for a child who turned away from the Lord or a friend who has never turned…
-
6 Promises for When You Feel Abandoned by God
“I feel like I’ve been abandoned by God,” my friend whispers through tears as we sit by the creek and watch flies rise from the water. She’s been in a tough season, and I tell her I can relate. Fifteen years ago, I uttered the same words. Since that time, I’ve uncovered a few valuable lessons about God and life. I share from my heart as the sycamores lean in with listening ears. I don’t know if she feels encouraged as we leave the water, but I pray she finds the faith to keep walking with God. When You Feel Abandoned by God Later that afternoon, my little boy stirs…
-
Feeling Broken Inside? This Is for You
The lingering daylight leads us to the woods again, and I sink into a moss-covered log while the kids throw sticks into the water. Something about the scene feels alive in the most organic way. It’s like a gentle reminder of how to have hope when you’re feeling broken inside. I’m thinking about life and fresh starts as the moisture of the sphagnum moss permeates my thin pants. It seems the rotting log is absorbing my weight as I enhance the decomposition and press into the dirt. The moss is all around me now, sucking its life from the rotting log’s decomposing nutrients. My mind shifts to Christ and his…
