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in Jesus
50 Shades of Grey. Like Actually.
Um, no, I haven’t read the book or watched the unsavory movie which inspired the title of this blog post. But I have been trying to choose the “perfect” grey for an accent wall in my living room. Something striking, but not overly dramatic. Modern, but also warm. A grey that is not “muddy” but ...
Can We Go Back to “Striving”?
It has evolved into a distateful word in the Christian lexicon. A word we feel guilty about. Over the years, I’ve dismissed and disparaged it, too.
What word am I referring to?
“Striving.”
We’ve turned the word “striving” into something almost sinister and sinful. I’ve written blog post after blog post saying “wise” things like, “May we not ...
How to Read the Bible Consistently in the New Year
“You’ll love reading the Bible more than you love chicken.”
About 30 years ago, someone at a teen Bible study I’d attended spoke those words over me. I don’t know if there were an "impression" of sorts from God on their hearts. In fact, I don’t even remember who shared them with me.
But, back in the ...
Christmas Rewrites the Questions
Earlier this week, I had the chance to do a mini solo getaway. Not just any getaway, but an uninterrupted time with God, reading the Word, worshipping Him, and simply practising His presence. In that place of quiet, I reflected on the year that has slipped by and spent some time thinking about what lies ...
The Thrill of Hope, The Weary World Rejoices
Back in 2007, eighteen long years ago, I hung up an ornament on our Christmas tree. Why would I remember that moment?
The hubbers and I had been married about two years, and I was six months pregnant with our firstborn. We were excited and anxious soon-to-be parents. I remember hanging up that particular dull-gold ornament ...
Give Thanks in ALL Circumstances? How??
On the eve of Thanksgiving, we walk through tired hospital corridors. We are there to visit a friend, but we can’t meet him because he’s still in the ICU. His sister watches the clock in the waiting room. She is emotionally exhausted—but she is also remarkably resilient. As we talk to her, there’s something else—through ...
How Can We Reclaim Joy?
When my daughter was little, she would present me with dainty bouquets—composed entirely of weeds. We lived in Portland, Oregon, at the time, and on our few and scattered sunny days, my mini-me would joyfully run through the grass, filling her hands with wispy dandelions and wild daisies. When she gave me her handcrafted bouquets, ...
The Real Answer to Procrastination
About half an hour into scrolling through amusing but irrelevant reels, my eyes glaze over, and my brain feels numb. When I look up from my phone, a familiar feeling creeps up on me: frustration. Once again, I’ve wasted more than 30 minutes watching clips of AI-generated babies making ridiculously incisive and somewhat inappropriate comments. ...
What I Learned about God — at a Mosque
As I tilt my head at a certain angle, I catch a glimpse of the shimmering domed ceiling. Though I want to linger, the crowd behind me feels overwhelming — I only take a moment to glance at the mosaic: Mary, robed in a deep blue, sits on a jeweled throne. She holds a young ...
MEET SUSAN
