Once upon a time, a little girl named Mary Beth found herself caught in the pre-Christmas swirl of activity, all of which seemed to be coming to a head on Christmas Eve. Her dad was always scurrying about, loaded down with bundles and burdens. Her mom, under the pressure of getting ready for the great occasion, had succumbed to tears several times during the day. Read more…
We had prayed for a year and felt confident we knew God’s answer. How could we have been so wrong?
Before my husband and I graduated from college as a young married couple, we prayed that God would lead us to exactly where He wanted us to start our lives. After a year, we felt sure He had called us to a small town outside of Charlotte, Read more…
There have been times when my heart ached because of a situation I did not like: a bad decision that led to bad situation, an unexpected happenstance that created an unresolved circumstance, a health issue that hung on for far too long. A chapter that I did not like. I’ve thought, God I do not like this chapter of my story! Read more…
Thanksgiving is just a few days away and so I’ve been thinking about gratitude a lot lately. What is it? When should we show it? What does God say about it?
Just last week I learned that the Hebrew word for gratitude means “to recognize the good.” I love that! don’t you?
Paul wrote the Thessalonians, Read more…
When we’re in pain, we want God to comfort us! Right now! But what if He’s in the process of making us comfort-able first. That’s what this little boy teaches us. Keep reading.
A storeowner was tacking a sign in his store window, which read PUPPIES FOR SALE, when a little boy appeared.
“How much are you selling the puppies for?” he asked. Read more…
Have you ever felt like you were walking a tightrope through life…just trying to balance everything and not fall into a pit? I have. Let’s think about this story…don’t give up…read to the end!
“Blondin” was the stage name for Frenchman Jean-Francois Gravelet. He was a fair-skinned, blue-eyed, and blonde-haired young man who migrated to the United States with a troupe of acrobats employed by Master Showman P.T. Read more…
A few months ago, I was in the airport headed to New Jersey. It was a typical rush, rush, rush morning. Grab the bags, trudge through traffic, hunt for a parking space, follow the herd, wade through security, dash to the gate.
Folks aren’t usually very friendly in airports. Eyes look straight ahead. Purposed feet slap the floor. Read more…
I don’t know about you, but a few of my greatest lessons on how to love other people haven’t come from church folks. For example:
Nestled 50 feet off Highway 17 in Pawley’s Island, S.C., used to rest C.J.’s Beach Club. For years, Steve and I eyed the clapboard building tucked in the grove of myrtle trees, but it wasn’t the sort of place we would tend to visit. Read more…
My son, Steven, was in the ninth grade when I turned in the manuscript for my book, Being a Great Mom, Raising Great Kids. I should have waited until he was in the tenth grade.
That fateful morning, I placed my neatly printed pages in a padded enveloped, prayed a blessing over the bundle, and then dropped a year of hard work in the mail slot at the post office. Read more…
A sign was posted on a telephone pole by the grocery store: “LOST DOG with three legs, blind in left eye, missing right ear, tail broken, and recently castrated. Answers to the name of Lucky!”
Perhaps you feel just about as “lucky” as that lost dog. Hobbling along. Impaired vision. Broken tail. Well, you get the picture. There was a woman in the Bible who also felt like she was out of luck and had nothing to give. Read more…
