Jesus

Weakness and Strength: How to Let God Redeem Our Weaknesses

For the sake of Christ, then, I am content with weaknesses, insults, hardships, persecutions, and calamities. For when I am weak, then I am strong. 2 Corinthians 12:10 ESV I hate looking weak and being a 5’3″ woman doesn’t help that perception. Maybe that is why I like martial arts so much. I feel strong,…
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How to Keep Our Eyes on Jesus When We Fail, Again

But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for his own possession, that you may proclaim the excellencies of him who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light. 1 Peter 2:9 Failure. It is a label I carry around in my heart and mind. One I plaster…
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Enough Faith: Trusting God When Things Don’t Go Our Way

And Jesus said to him, “‘If you can’! All things are possible for one who believes.” Immediately the father of the child cried out and said, “I believe; help my unbelief!” Mark 9:23-24 ESV “If only you had enough faith, you would be healed…” I’ve heard folks utter those words too many times. Is God really a great vending machine…
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Love U 3 Do I Love All of God?

My fingers are not the most nimble and at times texting can be dangerous. The dreaded auto-correct makes an innocent text sound like a proposition. And when I meant to text my husband “Love U 2,” my finger slid or something it I sent “Love U 3.” I smiled and quickly sent another text “2.…
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Shadows and Light

Today I have the privilege of guest posting at Hannah’s Prayer Ministry’s blog called Held. You can check it out here. Let me add that Hannah’s Prayer Ministry is a wonderful place for women struggling with infertility. Those women have walked the roads of infertility and found intimacy with God. They will not promise you…
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Could it be Pride?

Josiah became king of Israel at the tender age of eight. When he was 16 he began to seek the Lord. Four years later at the age of twenty he began to tear down the places of idol worship. Six years later he began to rebuild the temple of God. When the book of the…
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Dependance

It starts innocently. I want to honor God with the gifts He has given me. So I step out and speak and blog and write. Soon others are blessed by what I do. I hear: “God has gifted you.” “I love your blog.” “You are a great teacher.” Those words encourage and build me up.…
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Living with Passion

Would you consider liking my Facebook fan page? Click on the Facebook icon under my picture in the right hand column. When you get to my Facebook page click the like button. My goal is 250 likes prior to July 15. I am getting close! Thanks for all your help!
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Do You Really Trust God?

Yesterday was our third day of Vacation Bible School (VBS) at our church. That day is the day we present the whole gospel clearly. This year we talked about Nicodemus and his discussion with Jesus. My fourth graders had some great questions. Questions that sometimes I failed to realize…   Did you know that Jesus…
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When Words are not Enough

Some things happen and there are no words. Winds tear apart cities, homes, families. Cancer spreads. Office politics crack and things change, maybe for always. Birth moms have rights that do not make sense when the spirit of the law is to protect children. Children die. Families mourn the gaping hole. Marriages crumble and shake.…
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Grace-full Accountability…

We open our hearts to one another. Share the hard things. The stuff that we struggle with. The things that leave our souls raw. The things we know are not quite right, but are not sure how to change. Some of the raw places are of our own making and others are wounds caused by…
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Accountability…

Deep down that word makes me cringe. It makes the inner rebellious child in me stand up and say, “I don’t need anyone to tell me what to do.” It is hard for me to swallow the truth that I need help. The bottom line is that I like to think I have it all…
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How Deep the Father’s Love for Us

My eyes pricked with tears – tears seem to come frequently – as I choked out the words to the song. Grateful, humbling, overwhelming tears. The kind that come from deep joy, deep sorrow, and the awe of amazing grace. The joy that God would save me, the sorrow that my sin would cost Him…
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1,000 Gifts continued

“It’s my dun mommy,” his voice louder than necessary as he points to a plastic cap on his coat. “I shoot bad duys [guys].” “Shhh, it is OK to pretend to shoot bad guys, but we need to use our indoor voice,” I encourage and quietly pray no one heard him. He persists in describing…
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Three Empty Chairs

My blessings have been prodding and poking the painful places in my soul lately. As God is apt to do He uses their naivety to shed light on things I would prefer to leave in the dark. He shakes me awake through them as they open their hearts to me… “Mommy, I want another baby…
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1,000 Gifts Continued…

Yesterday I woke up in pain. Long story, but I got kicked (purely accidental) hard in the head while I was sleeping. So I ended up with essentially whip lash…I have had it twice due to car crashes…This kick brought it back. So I stood in our church service and felt like I may vomit…
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A Little Reality

In case you have a picture of me…Dressed perfectly…Perfect kids…Neat and tidy house…. Let me tell you the reality of me… 1. I LOVE to wear “work-out clothes.” Always. An elastic waistband and a cotton t-shirt make me smile. I feel home. Don’t get me wrong dressing up is ok, but I prefer active wear.…
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Hooters and Honoring God

“Hooters?!” I said incredulously as we drove past what used to be an empty commercial lot. “Yep,” my husband nodded and he made the first left turn after Hooters to head to our lot. The lot we were building our new house on. I could hear the questions before they came. The questions from little…
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Spiritual Gifts

I feel blessed to help lead my church’s Wednesday night ministry to fifth and sixth graders. They challenge me, they ask me hard questions, they drive me to my knees often (either that they know Him better or that they sit quietly for two seconds in a row so they can learn). Anyway, last night…
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Why the Little Things?

Longing…Oh the stretching, longing, burning… The dream of what could be, where to go, but how to get there hangs in the air… We can’t see it. The journey from here to there, but the hope of there is planted firmly in our hearts. The here seems insignificant, unimportant, little. Oh but what we do…
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