-
The Secret to Having Peace in Life When Your Plate is Full
Autumn tends to be a full season for our family. Every year, this season nudges me to seek a deeper level of peace in life when the demands of my days feel overwhelming. This year, I’ve been shuttling the oldest to cross-country practice, storing vegetables from the garden, writing words, holding things down on the homefront, and fulfilling all the normal requirements that fill our days. Slipping away to the woods, it feels good to pause in the middle of it all. The Secret for Deeper Peace in Life As I quiet my racing mind, I think of a recent study on the book of Exodus. Moses is leading God’s…
-
How to Lean on the Lord in Disappointing Times
Do you need encouragement as you aim to lean on the Lord in a disappointing situation? Today, I invite you into our family’s world for a few practical insights on leaning on God. How to Lean on the Lord in Disappointing Times A few days before our son Caleb’s fourth birthday, I asked him what he wanted to do for fun. He requested a walk to the creek, and I threw out my plans for the day to take him to the woods. As sat along the quiet bank of the creek, I let him talk about his hopes and dreams. He was most excited about his upcoming birthday. “How…
-
Giving Control to God: 8 Life-Changing Ways to Let Go
Morning’s first rays of light slip through the curtain panels like beacons of hope. “Lord, help me to let go of control and surrender my life to you today,” I pray. I’ve been on a journey of giving control to God, and every day is an invitation to begin again. My journey began a few months ago when a friend came to visit and asked hard questions. She wanted to know how I was doing in my walk with God and where I felt stuck and discouraged in life. I told her that I sensed God calling me to stop clinging to control. I also noted that giving control to God…
-
The Secret No One Tells You in Your Lowest Moment
My lowest moment came on a sunny winter morning, golden beams of daylight blazing through the smudged windowpane. I awoke with a throbbing head and a list of regrets so long that I couldn’t begin to count them. Reeling from the grief of a crushing relational breakdown, confused about the trajectory of my future, and uncertain of how to move forward, I felt stuck. I wondered if my lowest moment would ever end and prayed for God to take away the pain. Maybe you can relate. Maybe your heart has been torn in two, and you’re living in the middle of your lowest moment today, too. What Is God Doing…
-
3 Truths for When You’re Searching for God
I walk the country roads because I’m searching for God beneath the sapphire skies. The rolling hills and muddied pastures offer space to listen to my soul’s longings. The farmers are tilling the ground again today. The country roads smell like earth, life, and possibility. I watch the black soil turn and consider the change that will occur in this very place in a few short months. This bare patch of earth will soon birth corn stalks that reach far above my head. As I walk past the tilling tractors, I’m reminded of the words Jesus spoke to his disciples: “The kingdom of God is like a man who casts…
-
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…
-
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…
-
For When You’re Disappointed by God
I climb onto the elliptical as a new day dawns, and I have no motivation to follow through with my usual routine. I’m feeling disappointed by God, and I’m not sure I feel like going through the motions today. I don’t feel like working hard, sweating, or watching a motivational message about God and all of his goodness. Maybe it’s the lack of energy lately. Maybe it’s the early morning cries from the little boy’s room that drew me from sleep three hours earlier than usual. Or maybe it’s the disappointment. Lately, I’ve been disappointed by a shattered dream. Everything I had planned for and hoped for has been thrown…
