-
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. Be sure to read to the end of today’s post for a free devotional eBook for hope and comfort.…
-
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…
-
6 Miscarriage Prayers for a Friend or Loved One
Several years ago, our family walked through one of the most difficult losses we’d ever faced. We lost a baby through a miscarriage. Today, I want to encourage you as you support a loved one or navigate your own loss. The following miscarriage prayers for a friend (or for yourself) can help you find healing in the arms of our heavenly Father. 6 Miscarriage Prayers for a Friend or Loved One Parts of this post are taken from my book, Lean Into Grace, where I share the full story of my miscarriage. I’ll invite you to read the entire chapter for free at the end of this post. First, let’s…
-
What to Do When the Walls Are Closing in
There’s a pileated woodpecker pounding at the bird feeder, and Caleb stands entranced at the window. The vibrance of autumn is a distant memory, and there are long, dark weeks until the first signs of spring. As I watch Caleb by the window, I admit it to myself: The walls are closing in, and I’ve discovered no helpful escape route just yet. What do you do when you’re in the middle of a long, dark season and can see no way out? Do This When the Walls Are Closing in Elisabath Elliot, the wife of martyred missionary Jim Elliot, often quoted a poem titled “Do the Next Thing.” A portion…
-
How to Have Faith in God During Hard Times
February came in waves of smoky grey. Patches of blackened snow lined the country roads, and overcast skies cast dim shadows. I was desperate for a quiet reminder about how to have faith in God during hard times. I went to the woods to find hope on a monochrome afternoon. Perhaps God’s created world would somehow breathe life into my faltering faith. Beneath the oaks, my mind drifted to the words penned by Henry David Thoreau: “I went to the woods because I wished to live deliberately, to front only the essential facts of life, and see if I could not learn what it had to teach, and not, when…
-
What to Do When You Feel Spiritually Empty: 5 Steps
Are you struggling with what to do when you feel spiritually empty? Most of us face times of spiritual dryness. The disciplines that once helped us feel connected to God stop working. Instead of feeling life-giving, they begin to feel empty and dry. Today, we’ll talk about what to do when you feel spiritually empty. I invite you to join me as I gaze out the window feeling apathetic and disconnected from God on a cold winter morning. What to Do When You Feel Spiritually Empty The golden abundance of autumn has been swallowed by the monochrome grey of winter now. As I gaze into the ashen landscape, I wrestle…
