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Strolling to the Finish Line, an invitation to slow down this summer
Summer time is a special time in our home, and by “special” one might say stressful. There is confusion somewhere in between the desire for me to be at home with my precious children which I balance with my work life (which I also love). I devote the majority of my time to my children, which essentially means that… I devote the majority of my time to my children! With little time to myself in the summer, I have struggled with feeling overwhelmed. I found myself giving myself a pep talk that sounds like this, “You’ve got this! Run your race well.” After a few minutes, I was stopped by…
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The Story of 12 Years
We all face times of pain, uncertainty, and despair. And Jesus shepherds His daughters through the dark valleys, step by step. Here’s the story of two female lives running parallel for 12 long years: one growing in family, love, laughter, joy, and hope for the future. The other declining in sickness, isolation, financial ruin, fear, and hopelessness. Both experience spiritual healing, renewed life, and eternal hope through faith.
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A picture of healing and hope from the Master Gardener
Today I am honored to feature the heart of my friend Laney Wooten. Laney lives outside of Longview, Texas. She is a wife to Jon and a mother to 8 children. Laney is a worship leader, gardener, homeschool Mom and a faithful follower of the Lord. In the years I have known Laney she has lost a father, released a special needs son to full time care, parented a second child through special needs and walked through adoption and trauma. She invites you in on her most recent journey through loss, grief, and healing. I pray her vulnerability will inspire you to visit the neglected spaces in your own heart…
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Healing from Heartache in Friendships
At the age of 18 I left my hometown, pursued college, and began a life of adventure, changing addresses and meeting new people along the way. Still, there were friendships made in my formative years that were deep and meaningful to me. About a decade after leaving my hometown I paid a visit as a newly wed with my husband. While shopping in a local store he pulled me aside and said, “Hey, didn’t you say that “so and so” is one of your best childhood friends? Well, I just saw her ducking behind an aisle, obviously hiding from you.” My heart sank. Knowing that we had not invested in…
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The Secret to Beautiful Feet
These days, we have access to more foot products than ever before. But feet aren’t judged on the way they look. Feet are judged on the message they carry. So what’s the secret to beautiful feet? Beautiful feet bring...
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Shame, Jesus, and Me
This month I’m honored to invite my friend and teammate Christian Williams as my guest blogger. I love being in Christian’s company because one minute she’s making me laugh so hard I’m crying and the next she has stopped me in my tracks with a thought-provoking reflection. Christian is a Dallas transplant (Native Arkansan) and DTS student who loves communicating truth and building safe, authentic, purposeful communities. She feels God’s pleasure most when using her imagination, storytelling, teaching, and living in intentional relationships which yield growth and transformation. Dub: (verb) to give an unofficial name or nickname to (someone or something). I dub everything. From my period- I call her…
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Find Healing for Hurting Hearts
What’s on your New Year’s Resolution list? If your list is a lot like mine, it includes returning to pre-holiday healthier eating habits and making time for exercise several times a week. Those are common resolutions regarding physical fitness. Not so common are resolutions pertaining to our emotional fitness. But I have a book recommendation that might help with your 2020 emotional goals: Healing Every Day: A 90-Day Devotional Journey by Mary DeMuth.
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Surviving Abortion: An Interview
“One out of every four women has had an abortion,” Jane* explained to me.[1] She sat across the table looking down at the coffee cup between her nervous hands as she shared her heart and the heavy burden she’d carried for a number of years—she was a survivor of abortion. No, her birth mother had not tried to abort her. She, rather, had aborted two babies many years ago. She explained the circumstances, the scenarios, and her guilt. I listened and cried with her, saying little. I gave her space to tell me the details of her story. And then I told her that I loved her and that Jesus…
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Hope Deferred—Observations from Hannah’s Story
She pushed herself up from the table and left the room. She did not have much appetite. The day had been long, and she could take the painful and provoking comments from Peninnah no longer. As she walked towards the temple, tears poured from her eyes and slid down her cheeks and nose, making a wet trail in the dust. Her lips moved as she prayed, but she did not utter a sound as she pleaded and begged the LORD for a child. To make matters worse, the priest believed her to be not grieved, but rather, drunk. (1 Sam. 1:7–14) Hannah suffered much because of her childless state. Many…
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When Your Heart is Choked by Hurt
Today's guest post is from my friend, author & ministry leader Ally Holland. The darkness was thick and suffocating, like a heavy blanket had been draped over my entire body. I had been sitting alone in my office for several hours, contemplating my circumstances, knowing full well I should have chosen my words more carefully. Anger can cloud your mind as it did mine, and before you know it you have hurt someone you love. Hurts from family members run deepest of all. Time passes and your heart goes quiet with apathy and indifference. You put up emotional walls hoping to prevent further harm. You even start stiff-arming God.…
