Have you ever told a lie? Maybe it was only a white lie…but it was still a lie. Have you ever been dishonest with yourself? Sometimes, the hardest person to fess up to is the reflection in the mirror. Well, it might seem easier to stay in the darkness of a lie and hide in it. But when you hide in the lie, it eats away at you. It degrades your integrity. And you may even tell yourself it’s okay to tell a lie to cover up the first lie. And boy does that become a mess real quick! I think …
Truer words were never spoken than when Stasi Eldredge penned in her book Captivating the feeling with which we women most struggle—we feel like we’re “too much” and “not enough.” We feel torn to bits among perfection, failure and just plain giving up. We cannot decide if Martha Stewart is attainable, because every time we try to make the perfect meal and keep the perfect home with a perfect centerpiece on the table, it would seem, we fail. There’s nothing to see here—no pictures of perfection. I’m just a woman, who wants to be more like Martha in the Bible, when she …
Being a mom is such a beautiful gift. But it comes with challenges every day. OVERWHELMED is WHERE MOST MOMS LIVE. We struggle with what our children are exposed to in this crazy world, the friends they hang around with, the schools they go to, their education, their temptations, what they watch on TV, the music they listen to… Moms struggle with finding their way, with comparing themselves among themselves, with trying to be Pinterest perfect mommies with Pinterest perfect homes and Pinterest perfect lives. But there are no perfect moms, there are no simple solutions, there are no easy …
“Sammy was tough from day one. Instead of bonding with me like my others, he seems to reject me. Constantly. I want to be close to him, but he just won’t let me. He allows his dad to hold him and rock him, but if I try my attempts are literally shoved away. I’m tired of trying.” “I try to love Janice. I really do. But people don’t see or experience what she is really like behind closed doors. It’s as if she lives to undo me emotionally. I may sound crazy, but I think she stays up at night …
Each footprint tells a story of a mom who went before us. Secrets of the matriarchal kind that whisper to our hearts, cheering us on, echoing hard-fought lessons, their very dust swirling in our faces. We strain to see through the hazy distance of time, the secrets their lives teach us. Secrets that speak from the heart of one mom to another. From them we discover what we should be doing… and what we shouldn’t. Principles of the general-kind. The ones that work for us all. But not the kind that make mommas think their own unique family fits into some kind …
Today, Easter Sunday, we celebrate the resurrection of Jesus Christ. But what does that really mean for us? It means that we can know God through the Holy Spirit. It means that when we mess up, God shows us grace through His forgiveness. Jesus took on the sins of the whole world when He was killed on Good Friday. And three days later, He rose to heaven to be seated at the right hand of the Father. We celebrate not for candy, the Easter bunny and colored eggs, but for the ultimate sacrifice Jesus was willing to give the whole world when He died …
Where do you turn when you need help? First and foremost it’s important to turn to God’s Word for guidance and direction. Proverbs 1:7 – The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge, but fools despise wisdom and instruction. (New International Version – NIV) So many great resources are available today to guide us along the path in our role as a mother. Now that my daughters are grown and have children of their own I am amazed at how many of the resources I still use. This shows me that no matter what stage you are in as a mom …
Laundry frames the end of my day, stacks of clean underwear and yet-to-be-folded t-shirts, drifts of unmatched socks and mountains of wrinkled jeans. Upturned baskets are scattered across the living room like tiny tables awaiting a tea party. But I’m not in the mood for a midnight soiree, I’m drinking from my own deep reservoirs of self-pity. I’m exhausted and the voices of discouragement in my head are clanking above what my heart knows to be true. What did you do all day? Why don’t you ever get anything done? You’re never going to have time to do something that …
All my life, I’ve been a planner. When my parents would take my brother and I on a vacation, I would be the one who would pick up the travel brochures and determine where we should go, what we should eat, and how we would get there. Today, I carry a spiral bound planner with me wherever I go. Inside this notebook is my monthly calendar, my to-do list, my grocery list, and my goals for what I want to accomplish for the day, month, and year. Having a plan makes me feel like I am in control. Until I’m not. …
Have you ever experienced a time in your life when everything is humming smoothly along and you know what to expect? It’s like landing on that sweet spot on the Candy Land path that gives you a shortcut to win the game. Or, how about a time when things have been the same for so long, you actually pray for a change? Those can be good times full of solidarity, security and simplicity. Just when you think nothing in your life will ever change…Life throws you a curveball. Someone who you love suddenly dies, or you lose your job unexpectedly, or how about when a good thing happens to you like …
