If you’ve ever felt like a failure, you’re not alone. We all struggle with feeling like a failure at one time or another—maybe as a mom, as a wife, as a friend, in ministry, at work, at holding our tongues, at loving the unlovable. Life brings us lots of opportunities to fail. How often have I made a simple mistake, …
If You’ve Messed Up, You’re In Good Company
When is the last time you messed up? I mean really messed up? Mine was last week. When I trip and fall, I have a decision to make: stay in the dirt and grovel in defeat or get back up and keep moving forward. Many women are living in silent defeat, comparing themselves to other women who likewise are living …
Being Grateful Amid Disappointment
What do you do when life just falls apart? I wish I could tell you each time life throws me a curveball, I strike up a chorus of “It Is Well with My Soul.” I wish I could tell you that when my baby died, I hummed “Jesus Loves Me.” Or that when the pregnancy test came back negative for …
You Are Worth More
I’m sharing a devotion over at Proverbs 31 Ministries today. I wanted to share this with you too. Here’s what I want you to know: You are worth more! As a little girl, I never felt I was worth very much. I always felt I wasn’t pretty enough, smart enough or good enough. I sensed my parents tolerated me but certainly …
If You’re Going Through a Hard Time and Don’t Understand
Yesterday I wrote a devotion for Proverbs 31 Ministries. In light of all that happened in Texas this past Sunday, I’m thinking maybe you might need this encouragement too. I had to go back and read the words I wrote to remind myself of the truth of 2 Corinthians 4:18. Yep, sometimes we need to preach to ourselves. So we …
Free to Start Anew
Let me tell you about one of my dear friends from college…Laura. Laura lived in a small town with parents who were morally sound and family oriented. She went to church from her earliest remembrance and was baptized when she was 12 years old. In high school, she began dating Barry. After Laura went off to college, both of Barry’s …
When You’re Struggling with Bad Thoughts and Habits
Someone once asked me if I had ever struggled with a stronghold in my life. To be honest, at the time I wasn’t even sure what a stronghold was. So I did a little digging. A stronghold is one of those churchy Christianese words that’s hard to wrap your mind around. It’s not a word we use everyday. So what …
Moving Past Disappointment
Sometimes you expect you’re getting a Rachel and you wake up with a Leah. Okay, I know that example might connect better with a guy, but you get the point. Let me try that again. What do you do after you’ve crossed the Red Sea of obstacles, only to be dying of thirst at Marah three days later? How do …
When You Don’t Like the Story God is Writing
I often think of my life like a story God is writing…and so is yours. And to be honest, some parts of the story I don’t really like. If it were up to me, I would have written some of it differently. My second child would not have died, and I would have a daughter who would be 26 years …
When You’re Struggling with Disappointment of the Worst Kind
My son keeps me laughing with funny videos posted on YouTube.com. One was from the movie Hercules. Rumor has it that the script had the word “disappointed” in parenthesis, noting that the actor was to say the line as if he were disappointed. Instead, when the actor got to that particular line he yelled out…DISAPPOINTED! Oops! Now when I’m feeling …