Silence. That day after the Savior had died. The pounding of the nails, the jeers of the crowd, His cries of pain. Now Silent. His body in the tomb. What now? They surely longed to hear His comforting voice. But Silence. They had left jobs, families, everything to follow Him. Now what? Silence. Nothing.But.Silence. Confused,Continue reading “SILENCE”
Tag Archives: hold on
Turn your eyes upon Jesus🎶
It’s Holy Week. Palm Sunday’s church songs are growing faint in our ears. Gas prices are said to skyrocket.A former President is indicted.A country music award show celebrates drag queens. We find ourselves frustrated, worried and distracted. But our hearts need Jesus just as much this Tuesday as we did Sunday. Honestly, in this messedContinue reading “Turn your eyes upon Jesus🎶”
Hold on!
I have shaken my head so much my neck hurts. I’ve tried to convince myself things aren’t as bad as they seem, but I’m secretly thinking they are worse than we all know. Yes, the world is a dark place, but we, who call ourselves believers, need to diligently remind ourselves of what we believe.Continue reading “Hold on!”
Peace, be still … for the storms tossing us to and fro!
I had woken up to a horrific storm. Wind howling. Sheets of rain. Booming thunder. The storm outside passed, but I couldn’t sleep. Another storm, the one affecting us all, the condition of our world, was on my mind. In Luke 8, Jesus is exhausted from his busy ministry. He tells his disciples to getContinue reading “Peace, be still … for the storms tossing us to and fro!”
When we don’t understand.
I sat crying yesterday as the news of the Nashville school shooting came, not just from my television, but from family and friends. My brother-in-law grew up with the dad of one of the little girls who was killed. My sister-in-law had gone to college with him when he started a ministry there. My husbandContinue reading “When we don’t understand.”
These people truly love you
I heard a pastor once say, “You can’t preach peace to those who walk in disobedience.” The truth is, as much as we want others to experience the rivers of peace we know because of Christ; those who insist on walking their own way, in disobedience to the ways of God, will never experience theContinue reading “These people truly love you”
When you feel afraid…
Three years ago today, my daughter sent me these words. The world has only gotten scarier but her words are still keep-you-going truth…. Completely and utterly afraid… Overwhelmed, tired, ready to wake up from this bad dream… That’s exactly how I feel. I have this knot in my stomach, and this fear, every time IContinue reading “When you feel afraid…”
It won’t always be this hard
As Christian’s, there is something we have to do that is incredibly hard to do. We have to be okay with not understanding everything. I’ve talked with so many people who are walking through incredibly hard things, or dealing with situations that just make no earthly sense. Something devastating has happened that they don’t understand.Continue reading “It won’t always be this hard”
When you don’t understand the hard things happening in this world
Matthew 2 has always bothered me. I don’t like the fulfillment of the prophecy of “Rachel weeping for her children” as Herod slaughters countless male babies under two years old. Babies. I’ve wondered why God would let this bloody, horrific event take place. But to stay stuck in this is to have my theology offContinue reading “When you don’t understand the hard things happening in this world”
Just do the next right thing
Something I notice as I read Matthew 1 and 2 is that God didn’t give Joseph all the steps at once—just the next one. But all the while, God was accomplishing His perfect will and working in ways Joseph couldn’t see. Joseph didn’t know the wise men were on their way with gifts. But theyContinue reading “Just do the next right thing”
How hard it is to be a believer today (especially a young one)
A few years ago I posted about my concern over the Super Bowl half time show and that post was shared a lot. Because the post was shared so much, people who wouldn’t typically see my page read what I had written. Most comments were supportive, but others were quite irate. I was called severalContinue reading “How hard it is to be a believer today (especially a young one)”
Remembering He has us.
Sometimes, we try to go one way and God sends us another. He did that to Paul and Timothy in Acts 16, and I know He does that in our lives too. Years ago, we had walked some property dreaming of where we’d build our home. We showed it to others, we did the math,Continue reading “Remembering He has us.”
I woke up early thinking of those I love in this hard world…
I woke up early thinking about my young adults, and several others that I love like my own. They are trying to make big decisions in a hard world. They are fighting discouragement as many of the normal things, we who are older, took for granted, now seem so very far out of reach. TheyContinue reading “I woke up early thinking of those I love in this hard world…”
Unexpected, hard ways…
Matthews gospel records the miraculous birth of the Savior. (Matt 1:18-25) The oh-so familiar story has been the subject of countless movies, books and church programs. And we often, breeze past these verses. But Jesus did come. Prophecy was fulfilled. God sent His Son to us! And if this were not true, there would beContinue reading “Unexpected, hard ways…”
One thing that defeats FEAR!
There are so many things in this world right now, that tempt us to fear. I’m sick of seeing the enemy rob us of peace because we are distracted, discouraged, and gripped by fear. The enemy really uses that. But here’s one thing I’ve learned that has disarmed him time and time again in myContinue reading “One thing that defeats FEAR!”
I’m Not Enough For My Kids
I’ll be sharing with young moms this morning and tonight at First Baptist Concord. I’d appreciate your prayers. As I think of that, I’ll share something God laid on my heart several years ago— I’m Not Enough For My Kids What feels like a long time ago now, a squirmy, wet, beautiful, little creature wasContinue reading “I’m Not Enough For My Kids”
Don’t run ahead in your own strength
His fame grew. The crowds pressed. There was so much ministry to be done. So many lessons for the Savior to teach. And what did He do? He withdrew into the wilderness and prayed. (Luke 5:16). So often, I see needs….So many good things to do. And too often, I run ahead in my ownContinue reading “Don’t run ahead in your own strength”
Even When We Don’t Understand
To watch someone suffer pain and hold on to God, knowing He could’ve stopped it, but chose not to, is truly a holy thing to witness. My words don’t seem worthy to even attempt to describe such. Yet, little has encouraged my faith as much as this story has. It’s one I’ve closely watched unfoldContinue reading “Even When We Don’t Understand”
But even now…
In John 11, her brother, Lazarus, had died and Martha sits mourning with friends and her sister, Mary. They are told Jesus is coming. Martha bursts out of the house and goes to meet Him. She ran to Jesus. Martha is absolutely devastated over her brother’s death, but she STILL ran to Jesus. She saysContinue reading “But even now…”
Hope, when you feel like you have none…
Just over a year ago, an early morning message took my breath away. A mom, who loves Jesus, serves the Lord with her husband in ministry, and who had sat with me at ballgames as we watched our daughters cheer, messaged to let me know her daughter was tragically killed the night before. Tears filledContinue reading “Hope, when you feel like you have none…”