The first storm of the year blankets the mountain white, and the falling snow rises onto everything. We drive up the hill in the sunshine of the next day, and to this California girl, it’s a winter wonder. Icicles hang themselves in mid-air, and snow sits tall on every branch and rock. It’s perched there, […]
To Slow in This Season, and Reflect
I walk the perimeter of the tiny lake at sunset, and the trees reflect and glow on the surface of the lake’s still water. I walk, and ponder–reflect on my life, and this season I’m now living. There is silence. Ducks split the smoothness in formation, leaving a wake behind them. They are braving their […]
What I Learned {November 2013}
Learning is a lifelong process. A process I’m learning to notice with intention. Today, I’m joining Emily Freeman, sitting down to share, in no particular order, some of what I learned in October and November. And I’m looking forward to hearing what you learned too! 1. Scarves are in style. So in style! I see them everywhere. Different […]
Choosing to Give Thanks and Fighting for Joy
I so clearly remember how I wanted to be a mother. I watched new moms with their babies, and dreamed of holding a new baby of my own. Holding and bathing. Feeding and changing–a life of meeting my baby’s needs. And then, I became a mother. Four children in six years. Months and months of […]
When a Fallen Tree Takes Time to Grow Again
Because of my story, I receive emails every single week from women who are desperate for answers. Desperate for someone, anyone, to tell them what to do to fix the mess and pain of the life they’re living. And if there’s one thing I know for sure, sin brings pain–deep, gouging, life-altering pain, the likes […]
When Pain Blinds Us to the Truth
The truth is hard to see when we’re in pain. Doubt settles in like an opaque cloud clinging to a mountain and never letting go. Confusion rolls in as a fog, preventing us from seeing more than a few inches beyond our face. And we can’t see the sun that shines above the thickness. We […]
My Grace is Enough {Letters from God}
I want you to know I see your heart. I know your motives. I sense your effort in longing to please me. How you read my words, write your prayers, and memorize my ways. And I love how you see others I’ve made–how you seek to connect with them and love them too. But in […]
Life in His Laundry Room
I bend and sort the clothes, turn socks and flip shirts inside out, one piece at a time. And I’m always amazed how much laundry we have each week. Laundry stained with spills, smeared with soil, and marked with the activity of long days. Stains from running and jumping and playing. From kneeling in the […]
When You Wonder if There is Purpose in Pain
She loses her job this week and walks away with one less key on her ring and a feeling of loss in her heart. It happens so fast. Abrupt, sudden, and unexpected. Everything becomes ordinary all at once, and none of it is easy at all. After years of giving with grace and mentoring with […]
How to Give Grace With Your Words
I walk in the room and I immediately react. I hear his tone the wrong way, assume a meaning he never intended, and respond with words I eventually regret. This is the mistake I make countless times… Failing to use my words for good, Missing the opportunity to give grace to the one who’s listening, […]
