Navigating grief is one of the most emotionally exhausting experiences in life.There is no quick fix, no ignoring it, no hiding from it. When grief hits—the only option is to walk through it. Oh, we can all pretend for a time, distract ourselves with busyness or mind-numbing activities, but our bodies and minds will carry the weight of sadness no matter how hard we try to act as if the grief isn’t present.Putting together a list of books on grief ended up being harder than I expected. ... continue reading...
How to be the Wife Who’s Here If You Ever Need Someone to Listen
I tend to be the talker in our relationship.And my husband knows that about me.Thankfully, he likes that about me too.Whenever we go out for one of our afternoon drives, he'll grab the wheel, and before we're at the end of the driveway, he'll say, "Okay, babe, start talking."I don't have to be asked twice.This is my cue to begin the download: the things I've been struggling with, worried about, or excited by.All the things.He drives, and I talk. If You Need Someone ... continue reading...
The Best Kind of Friend
I love friendship, don’t you? Camaraderie, memories, laughter, shared heartaches and struggles. Friendship is a gift that I’m thankful the Lord created. But so often we struggle in friendship, don’t we?We want good friends, and it’s a good desire. Sometimes we struggle to find friends. And even in friendship, we experience loneliness, tension, and sometimes we hurt each other. Even still, we want friends!But I’ve become convinced of something through the years regarding friendship, and ... continue reading...
When Beauty Is Fleeting in a Camera-Happy World
It was five days before the Club 31 Women writer’s retreat in Oregon, to which I had been looking forward for months. But I stared at the email from our lovely host, Lisa Jacobson, in which she said, “Bring clothing for the photoshoot.”The photoshoot.So I did what any 50-year-old woman would do: cry. Of course, I’m going to tell you flat out that I also had started my period that day, so I might have been emotionally unstable to begin with.I’m just not going to do it, I said to ... continue reading...
The Gift of a Dad Who Cares for His Daughter’s Heart
There are a million ways a dad can care for his daughter's heart. All he needs to do is take the time and effort.Our youngest daughter cannot walk or run.She's been sitting in a wheelchair for as long as we can remember.She's eighteen years old now but rather childlike in most ways.A girl's heart in a woman's body.Avonlea does a pretty good job of cheering for other people her age who can do things she cannot---such as run or play games or sports.Or dance.Can I ... continue reading...
Life-giving Words to the Man Who Desperately Needs Them
Sometimes we don't realize just how valuable our life-giving words can be to our husband.We should have been sleeping.Both of us.Utterly exhausted, we had fallen into bed some time ago. Too tired to say much more than a simple, “Goodnight” and “Love you, babe.”But I could hear him breathing loudly in the night next to me. Not the sweet, drifting-off-to-sleep kind of breathing---but the labored, heavy-in-heart kind.I lay there listening to his restless soul.Then finally ... continue reading...
How to Dig Into Scripture On Your Own With Confidence
Studying scripture doesn't have to be overwhelming. Here's a great place to start!There comes a point in our walk with the Lord where we know we need to go deeper, but we just don’t know how. Unfortunately, most churches today don’t teach how to study the Bible for oneself. Women’s ministries, good though they may be, often use books or previously written studies with fill-in-the-blanks to help the reader pull out concepts. These books and studies accomplish great things and help us grow in ... continue reading...
What Your Husband Actually Wishes From You
It all began in a cafe---like so many of the meaningful moments in my life. My husband and I were sitting together over a grande latte in the newly-opened Starbucks at the Green Hills Mall. When my dear friend Susan walked in.My face lit up as soon as I spotted her.She and I had only known each other for a short time, but we’d made an immediate connection the minute we met.Soul-sisters.Our young family had recently moved to Nashville and I’d felt rather alone up until then. So ... continue reading...
When Your Child Questions Their Faith
Has your child expressed some questions or confusion in their faith? Here are some suggestions on how to work with your child.He'd been sitting on my bed for about 10 minutes with tears in his eyes."Mom everything is just so unfair. Why do all the bad things keep happening to us?"I didn't really have any answers for him that day. He was asking the same questions that I'd taken to God in prayer so many times over the last few years. So I just sat there and listened.After a few ... continue reading...
What Makes You An Amazing Mom {Even If You Didn’t Know It}
Most moms don't stop to describe themselves as an amazing mom. But our children may have another story to tell. We were sitting at the kitchen table together.And she said to me, "Mom, I’m doing this premarital counseling exercise, and we have to list places where we think our parents failed or did poorly. I can’t think of anything. I’ve tried, and I just can’t think of anything." She said that.I was shocked. I said, "What about… The time I screamed at you and your brother ... continue reading...
Why You Can Make His Little Wishes Your Big Priority
How can one jar of peanut-butter cause so much trouble? No kidding, that's what I wanted to know too.Because apparently it was A Big Problem and he made that quite clear.My husband was fed up with the sticky, slimy mess dripping down the sides of the peanut-butter jar and told me he wishes we'd put a stop to the madness."Why can't we keep this jar clean?! There's no reason we should live like this and it's driving me nuts!" He didn't yell, but I could tell by his tone that he really ... continue reading...
Get Organized 101: An Easy Solution to Start Right Now
As we talked, she continued to tell me how much of her home needed to be organized. She shared that as she would start on a project, she'd move things around to work on one area, then get interrupted or tired, and within a few days it was all a mess again.This happened over and over.Even though she took several bags to donate last week, she couldn't see that she'd made any progress. She always felt overwhelmed and buried by all the things she needed to do.When I asked her how long ... continue reading...