Scared to Hope

Several months ago I read a book that talked a little about being scared to hope. (I’ve previously written about another nugget I learned from it here.)  When I was reading this book and I got to the part about hope, it actually resonated with a situation I was in the midst of.  I had

My First Advent: A Recap

This was my first year to celebrate Advent. It is not something that has been a part of my tradition or religious background in the past. This year some friends introduced me to an advent study For All by Sacred Holidays. It was a workbook with a session to study each day for the three

Do Not Quit

How do you decide whether or not to throw in the towel when a situation feels hopeless? Recently I found myself in that place. I didn’t  have any fight left and I was ready to quit on something in my life.  There were some good circumstantial reasons to do just that and be justified. I

Set a Wide and Generous Table

Set a wide and generous table. I’ve been thinking a lot about simple hospitality, the good things that happen around a table and making yourself more vulnerable to others. I live in a modest log cabin in the woods by a pond. We live a beautifully simple life without a lot of bells and whistles.

Potty Training with Really Ugly Cats

When Abby turned two, we moved to a small island in the West Indies. We traded all that was familiar for something new. Although Abby was barely potty trained when we left, this transition to a completely new life meant that potty training  “came undone” as well. At that age, Abby loved cats and all

Keep Your Eyes On Me

When my daughter Lydia was four years old, she sang a solo in our church for maybe the first time. She basically had no fear. She had the confidence, the love for music and the voice to go with it. I talked to her ahead of time about how she might feel when she was

Island Life: My First Criminal Lineup

In our early days of marriage and parenting, Nathan and I packed up our two young children and moved to a small island in the West Indies to get Bible stories into a language that had no written verses of scripture. This is a story about that season of my life. You can read more

God Said BE STILL

Several weeks ago God spoke to me very loudly. He said BE STILL AND WAIT ON ME. These words are simple and fairly common, but I heard them so loudly that night that I knew they were important. I was struggling that week. I felt God calling me to something I was passionate about that seemed so

Mom Confessions: Last night I snapped, and today I’m cleaning up the mess.

Last night I snapped. Big time. Nathan has been gone all week.  After school yesterday, I stayed busy taking care of all the things. I worked steadily all evening, but it was under control. Until it wasn’t. At 8:45 P.M.  I tucked the youngest into bed. I started on the pile of dirty dishes. I wondered

The Rain Made Me Do It

It was the rain that caused me to write this.  I just started a new job. My husband is out of town. And it’s the last week of summer for my kids. But yet the rain calls me. It says Slow down and listen. Sit on the back porch and watch me fall. Watch the