I have a confession to make. My Bible reading plan was going really well until I got tothe end of 2 Kings. At that point it became very hard to not simply skip ahead to Psalms or Proverbs where I knew I would find a few more uplifting and encouraging passages to read. Many times…
What comes to your mind when you hear the word patience, or be patient? Perhaps a groan or a response, “that’s easy for you to say but I…” Patience is not a pleasing thought, but a longed-for character trait. We have so little of it. The lack of it shows up early. Our toddler stomps…
“Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplicationwith thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.” Philippians 4:6-7 (ESV) I discovered the power of gratitude in one of my gravest moments. It started when…
“I have loved you with an everlasting love; I have drawn you with unfailing kindness.” (Jeremiah 31:3) My two mentees and I were sitting on my deck talking about our mentor study, Red Sea Rules. The night was calm, the string of deck lights illuminating the dark, and the three of us reflected on what…
When I was a high school senior, I heard a sermon about Shadrach, Meshach, andAbednego where the pastor pointed out a detail in Daniel 3:27 I’d never noticed.There was no smell of fire on them. Everyone knows if you stand near a fire for even two minutes your hair will smell likesmoke for days. If…
Who has despised the day of small things?Zechariah 4:10, NKJV When I came to pastor the Brooklyn Tabernacle decades ago, we had just a handful of people. At first I had natural enthusiasm. I wasn’t seminary trained, and my sermons were bad, and the offerings were pitiful—the first one I collected was eighty-five dollars—but I…
In 2023, I released my first book, and my husband became a partner in his orthodontic practice. It was the year our dreams finally came true. Then, the second half of 2023 came along. One of our children developed severe anxiety. This anxiety presented in both emotional and physical ways. We saw the light that…
“Therefore encourage one another and build one another up, just as you are doing.” I Thessalonians 5:11 (ESV) I don’t know why I hadn’t picked up on it earlier. But one early Friday evening, I looked out to see my husband walking by with his shoulders slumped and his stride too slow. He moved as…
I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. 2 Timothy 4:7, NIV I always say that my daughter, Glory, woke me up to life. She had just turned four years old when she had her first seizure, a seizure that should have left her unable to walk or…
Bess and Gary couldn’t wait for the empty nest. Raising their kids had been tough. They had different approaches to discipline, they’d struggled on a tight budget, and they’d postponed many of their dreams in order to be with their kids. Now the last one was leaving the nest, and they felt they had done…
“I will ponder the way that is blameless…I will walk with integrity of heart within my house. I will not set before my eyes anything that is worthless.” Psalm 101: 2 (ESV) When I was a little girl, I used to play “house” for hours with my cousins. We’d make our rooms out of plastic-woven tri-fold beach chairs turned on…
“May the Lord cause you to flourish, both you and your children.“Psalm 115:14 NIV It’s been a minute since I’ve done the back-to-school thing, but whether you’re sendinga toddler to preschool with a nap mat under her arm or a teenager to college with a new mattress topper and a whole bed-in-a-bag, I imagine you…
“Be Still and Know that I am God.”Psalm 46:10(a) It was one of those moments when I wished I had a “fast-forward” button for my life. I sat in the sterile room waiting for the surgeon to arrive. On the tray table next to me were needles, scalpels and gauze. I could feel my sympathetic…
Club31Women is honored to showcase the winning pieces from the COMPEL Writers Training competition, featuring heartfelt devotionals written by emerging Christian writers. COMPEL equips women with the tools and confidence to write words that matter—and these devotionals are a beautiful reflection of that mission. “Whether you turn to the right or to the left, your ears will…
When we consider mental health, we often think of pleasant feelings or, at the very least, an absence of unpleasant feelings. We associate mental health with feeling at peace, content, or hopeful about the future. But the truth is, mental health is less about what feelings you are experiencing and more about being a good…
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