A Lesson from the Best
What an exciting Monday it has been for our family! Freshly sharpened pencils and crisp new notebooks were all laid out for our first day of school. No sooner did the books crack open and the assignments begin for Math and Latin, when we joined our friends at the park to watch the solar eclipse. What a privilege to have such opportunities for learning! But can I be honest with you? I haven't always been enthusiastic about education. Prior to college, I was one of those students who never seemed to work to my potential, even when encouraged by my
Devotional: Come & See – Life Lessons From Women in the New Testament
Our 2nd devotional has been published on YouVersion! What can you learn from the lives of Mary, Ann, Herodias and others? These women may have lived thousands of years ago but their stories still speak to us today. Check out the link below to learn more about the plan and to subscribe. We pray it is an encouragement to you! Come & See - Life Lessons From Women in the New Testament: https://www.bible.com/reading-plans/4500-come-see-life-lessons-women-in-the-new-testament
Qualified
Have you felt inadequate or too afraid to speak up because you feel unqualified or even rejected? I’ve been there. I’ve felt ashamed to speak up because I felt like an outsider, like my opinion didn’t matter. Second Kings chapter 5 talks about a young Jewish girl who was pulled away from her home in Israel and everything she was familiar with, then placed as a servant in the household of Naaman, a highly regarded commander in the king’s army. She could have easily felt ashamed as a slave girl, with no rightful place to speak up. However, when she
When You Can’t Walk Away
How do you handle moody, angry or just plain foolish people? Anyone who knows me knows that I have no tolerance for nonsense. If I can, I walk away from those people...and I stay away. But what if we can't walk away...what if it's people we work with or live with, what if it's family or someone we are forced to encounter often...then what? There is a story in the Bible of a woman who faced foolishness everyday. In fact, she was married to Nabal, a man whose name literally means fool. Her name is Abigail and her story is
Terrible or Terrific .. You Choose
Words are pretty powerful, aren't they? When my oldest daughter was three years old, I was struggling with how to address her behavior. One could often hear me saying, “First, the terrible two’s. Now, the terror three’s. I don't know what to do!!” I had heard about a parenting class and I jumped at the chance to attend because I needed advice badly. At the end of the session, we were invited to submit questions anonymously to the teacher on an index card. I worked up the courage to ask: “How do you deal with a child who is in
A Fire in my Bones
At the start of summer, my thirteen year old, began to "play around" a little more on the piano. He would hear a song at church or on the radio, then come home and try to figure out the keys. The more he played, the better he played. I was pleasantly surprised. "Wow, Caleb...that's sounds really nice." His response, "Thanks.. I feel like God is moving my hands." From the moment I heard him say those words, I heard God say..."I'm moving in you too." God confirmed that same message this weekend, as I attended a small women's fellowship
Treasure Hunt
Last week was our annual beach excursion. I have said in prior posts how much I love the beach and the ocean- the sound of the waves does something to reset my soul. It's a peaceful respite from the normal grind. I love to collect shells from each of our trips. I wish I could tell you that I do something creative with them- I don't. They are all sitting in labeled, plastic bags somewhere in my home. On this trip, I walked along the sand and caught a glimpse of a few shells, but they looked like ones that I had already collected on
Divine Design
It’s been said that my sister and I look a lot alike. Some people say we act alike too. As similar as we are, we also have our differences. There is a part of me that has always wanted to be like her. Even when we were young. She’s smart and silly, easy-going but grounded. She connects easily with people - ask our circle of girlfriends and they will tell you that Binu is their closest friend. Growing up with a sister so close in age can stir up a lot of comparisons. There’s a pair of sisters in scripture
Hosea & Gomer
Earlier this year, if you had asked me which Bible character I related to the most, you probably would have heard... Martha, Priscilla or even Ruth. Great women, who sought after the true heart of God. But half way into our Bible reading plan, I have a new woman to add to my list. Not someone I aspire to be, but rather someone I once was. Hosea's wife, Gomer. The Old Testament book of Hosea was written during a time of general prosperity but spiritual starvation. The culture had shifted and God's people were immersed in idolatry, especially the worship
The Highs and Lows
I had a pretty simple plan today. Work. Come home. Make coffee. Drink coffee. Write my weekly post. All was going according to schedule until I was about 5 minutes away from home. That's when the tire light came on in my car. Oh great. Seriously??? I had been up since 3 a.m.. Taking care of car stuff was the last thing I wanted to do. My husband was busy working so I made my way to get my tires checked. On my short trip over there, I saw a lady pulled over on the side of the road with a
