The Truth About Mistakes
Naturally, I was running late. As hard as I try to avoid it, I’m generally 5-10 minutes behind schedule, this time due at a gathering with some girlfriends at a quaint restaurant in Old Town. Thinking ahead, I knew that the parking situation could present a few...
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Overcome Worry and Embrace Joy
My thoughts raced as I replayed our conversation in my mind. Her struggles tugged on my heart. Caring for aging parents is never easy, but yesterday had been especially hard. Her body screamed in anger after experiencing a minor fall two days earlier. She couldn’t...
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Seeing God at Work Through His People
My life is jumbled. That’s not a bad thing – in fact, much of what causes the jumble is very good. It just creates a lot of twists and turns that prevent me from functioning in a rhythmic routine. I’ve learned that’s how I best like to function. It seems that when my...
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The Day My Joy Almost Slipped Away
“You need to go home and take a NAP!” Okay, my friend wasn’t quite that blunt, but she did stress a need for rest. We sat together in a coffee shop, each working away on our laptop computers. “Are you taking days off?” she asked. My answer was a murmured, “No.” My...
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Finding Joy in Marriage Through Prayer
"It's difficult to find joy in marriage." "Marriage is hard work." What profound understatements. I remember in the giddiness of our young engagement thinking, “We love each other so much, marriage will be easy for us.” Boy, were we wrong. We entered marriage with...
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How Prayer Rescued Our Marriage
Ours is a story like many others: Married for love with a desire to honor Jesus Soon consumed by worldly ambitions Work schedules prevented church and small group attendance Stopped pursuing God and each other Accepted this life rhythm and ignored warning signs Turned...
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Finding Joy in Marriage
Joy in Marriage Finding joy in marriage comes with great challenges. If you’ve been married longer than one day, I’m sure you realize that. There are many times when joy flows freely and our hearts feel full of love and respect for our spouse. Other times, marriage is...
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Embracing Joy Even Through the Grumps
Frustrated. Anxious. Short-tempered. That’s how I felt when a large project seemed to take too long over Memorial Day weekend. Delays—completely out of my control—made it difficult to embrace my joy. After the project, however, I looked back thinking, “Well, that...
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The Christian Mom’s Guide to Thrive in Joy This Summer
It's not even “officially” upon us and already you're looking for help to thrive in joy this summer. You can almost feel your overwhelm causing your joy to slip away. Not because of too much time with the kids. Sure, they can get on your nerves from time to time, but...
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When God Seems Absent: 3 Unexpected Lessons from Queen Vashti
Have you ever made a simple decision that impacted a huge part of your life? A decision that had consequences far beyond what you ever imagined? Queen Vashti did. The Bible records Vashti in one of the worst seasons of her life, which echoes powerful lessons for us...
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Seek God’s Love, Unhindered
When you seek God's love and presence, what tends to get in the way? Is it your task list? Your past mistakes and associated shame? This morning's disagreement with your husband? Anxiety and fear? A focus on failure? If you're like me, there is often an onslaught of...
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21 Ways to Pray for Law Enforcement
More than three decades ago we faced incredible life changes. I said “I do” to the man of my dreams nearly 31 years ago. He was a construction worker and I was a student. The local Sheriff's Office hired him just six short months later. While neither of us predicted...
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4 Reasons to Keep a Spiritual Journal and How to Begin
I’ll admit I’m not one who keeps a daily spiritual journal. Like most things in my life, journaling takes on the familiar “inconsistent-yet-somehow-still-effective” sort of routine. I journal in a variety of ways during times when the Holy Spirit seems to whisper,...
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15 Bible Verses to Help Overcome Discouragement
Rarely do I receive such an outpouring of response. I recently sent a message to the people on my ministry mailing list. It summarized my past struggle with finding joy. (If you missed it, you can read the gist of that story here). The message resonated. Almost...
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Fighting for our Kids Through Prayer
There’s nothing that causes a momma’s heart to ache more and spurs a desire to fight for our kids through prayer. It doesn’t matter how old her children become, they will always be “babes” to their momma. When they encounter various trials, it will always affect us...
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Thanks so much for visiting. I’m glad you’re here!
I’m an overcomer with a heart to teach others to overcome, too. Trials in life can be tough… sometimes nearly paralyzing. But they don’t have the power to hold us down. Why? Because we’re made free in Christ.
This blog is about sharing life, embracing joy, and overcoming together. Because our Creator and Savior never intended that we walk the path alone. Let’s learn to follow hard after Jesus, side by side.
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