My husband and I stayed in a motel in Nashville two nights before a tornado ripped through the area. We watched the destruction on television and wondered at the fact that we were just there, in its path. We marveled at our last minute decision to come home two days earlier than planned. A few […]
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What would it have been like to reach a hand to Jesus’ shoulder where he slept and shake him awake? We relate well to the waves of Mark 4 splashing into the boat, the wild winds and terrifying storm bigger and greater than our ability to bear. We understand that sinking feeling, and the panic […]
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“No, no, no,” he said. He held his little hand like a stop sign. His voice raised a breathy octave. “Let’s not play it like that, let’s say if you want to move ahead on red, you can.” He nodded up and down, cocked his head to the side and put his pleading blue eyes […]
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Anybody who grew up barefoot on a Kansas farm knows about stickers. A flat lying torture-in-waiting plant with seeds like tiny wooden barbs. They spread viciously, looking for tender skin to walk on them. Impossible to let fester, they took a lot of courage to pull out. I hated stickers growing up. Word had it […]
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After a string of long days, it had culminated into the perfect storm. My two-year-old, four-year-old, and seven-year-old each had the issues of a titanic about to sink. All at the same time. Temper, stubborn and bossy. I’d hit at least 80% of the never-would-I-ever-do-as-a-mother vows in one day. The control I should have had […]
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In the love month, my challenge to you is to read what is called the love chapter in the Bible. 1 Corinthians 13 always convicts me of straying tentacles of my heart strings, and is always worth its read. If you are acquainted with the chapter, you might recognize it in how it spoke to […]
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I heard the truck-stop bathroom door squeak open from my perch inside the painted wooden stall. “Oh Momma!” A little voice said full of wonder. “It’s pink.” Pink was an understatement. It was like Pepto-Bismol trying to brighten up a bad case of the runs. It covered every inch of the public lu. My door […]
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The plans of the heart belong to man, but the answer of the tongue is from the Lord. Proverbs 16:1 (ESV) “Life will never be the same,” I told my friend. “No matter how this turns out, life will never be the same again.” We walked through a white marble hospital corridor, its antiseptic walls […]
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Here they come again. Younger each year, or maybe I’m just older. They come with their finger on a map and feet pointed forward, eager to go anywhere and do anything for Jesus. Men and women arrive ready to learn and willing to obey. Every new group of global workers amazes me with talent, energy […]
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Sheets of frozen white driven by cutting wind kept my snow-loving son indoors. By late afternoon, the worst moved past. Glittering flecks blew from drift to drift, tiny razor shards of snow bit into anyone brave enough to challenge the outdoors. My husband shrugged into his marshmallow puffed coat, scarf, and hat to make a […]
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