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How to Accept God’s Gift Called Mercy
Have you ever felt defeated after trying your best and then falling short? Do you find it hard to accept God’s forgiveness when you fail? Mercy is a beautiful gift God freely offers us, but often, we struggle to receive it. It was unexpected and unplanned. A note slipped free from between the pages of my Bible and landed quietly in my hand. I didn’t remember reading the verse, much less writing it down. It was awe-inspiring to see it on a morning when I needed it most—a visible, tangible reminder that our heavenly Father is always loving, caring, and pursuing us. Even more remarkable was that God’s grace and…
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When You Are Tired of Waiting
The word “wait” was appearing in scripture again when I honestly didn’t want to wait again. I was tired of waiting. I felt worn out, frustrated, and disappointed from all the waiting for unpleasant and uncomfortable things to change in my life. My life was totally off the rails of any plans I had wished for, and I couldn’t see any hope for change as far as my eyes could see. So, I allowed my tears to fall and boldly cried out to God in prayer, “What does it truly mean to wait on You? What will it mean for me if I do?” In a moment when I honestly…
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God Is Never Too Busy To Care
It wasn’t the news I wanted to hear. My first thoughts were of my family’s needs and how I could possibly manage something else penciled in on my already overloaded calendar. My schedule was packed full of days spent caring for others to have time to take care of something that involved me. When I finally had time to go to God in prayer and His word, I was amazed when the scripture I landed on seemed so relatable to how I felt. It comforted my heart, and a peace settled over me. Even though I hadn’t received the good news I longed for, God wasn’t short on good news…
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Trusting In The One Who Is Stronger Than The Storm
“We are stronger than the storm.” Words I saw on a Christian tee that landed on my heart after having just prayed for a deeper understanding of the story in Matthew 14:22-33. Jesus’ disciples had just witnessed a miracle. Jesus multiplied five loaves of bread and two fish to feed a multitude of over five thousand counting women and children and still had twelve baskets full of leftovers. The disciples were no doubt tired from all the excitement of the day and from actually serving that many people. But without any time to rest, Jesus sent them ahead to cross over to the other side of the lake, and He…
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Waiting For My Temporary to Change
“All the days of my appointed time will I wait, till my change come.” Job 14:14 (KJV) Temporary. I can totally forget in a hot minute what that word means when challenges find me. The enemy just loves to mess with our heads until we are thoroughly convinced we are permanently stuck in our situations and circumstances instead of temporarily on our way to passing through. Temporary means for a time only, brief, passing, transitory, short-lived. Unlike its counterpart, permanent, which means never changing, set in stone, fixed. Stuck. What brings change to our circumstances is a God who is anything but stuck and never rendered unable to change any…
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Learning What is Most Important
Do you find the most spiritual growth often comes from your most painful seasons? Have you ever felt you have learned more from your mistakes than what you have gotten right? Let me be the first to raise my hand. I relate so much to Habakkuk. There is so much we can learn from this book tucked within the pages of the Old Testament, but some of the lessons God doesn’t sugarcoat are painfully hard. We learn that God doesn’t always remove the difficult things that come into our lives. Some will come simply because we live in a fallen world. Others will find us because we choose to follow…
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Living More Authentic Lives
Do you ever wonder if you are the only one who struggles when life is hard? Do you look around and wonder if other people are screaming inside to lay down the mask of perfection and live more authentic lives just like you? Lately, I have felt a need for a pause. Grief and some unexpected adversities facing my family started to take a toll on this girl’s heart. It left me battling to press through fear of the unknowns and discouragement and make time to sit undistracted at my Master’s feet. I have been struggling, Y’All. Sometimes, life is hard, or at least on my side of the wilderness.…
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When God Doesn’t Give Us an Easier Life
Do you ever have mornings when you are tempted to stay in bed and hide from all the hard stuff going on in your life? Mornings when all you want to do is pull the covers over your head because, in all honesty, you don’t want to be an adult today? Maybe you are like me and just want life to be a little easier, but God keeps giving you all these seemingly hard things to tackle. If you answered yes to any of these questions, can we have an honest conversation? Sometimes, I am not a morning person. Just ask my husband about yesterday. Caregiving is hard, and some…
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Finding Hope Even When Life Brings You to Despair
Do you ever feel cast down while walking through a hard season? Do you find it helps to know you aren’t alone in how you feel? I get it. Sometimes, I get anxious, wanting to control all my outcomes. Times when fear floods my mind, and the “what if this” and “what if that” scenarios want to march around inside my head. I can quickly start to feel down and out, thinking about things I fear might happen and wondering how those things will actually play out in my life. I have lost count of the times I have fallen on my knees before God, pouring out all my worst-case…
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How to Start a Brand New Year
As I sat contemplating new goals for 2024, I suddenly became aware of two things. Others around me were blowing past me with all sorts of mind-blowing goals with matching palettes and color schemes to match. Me? I was finding it hard to get started this year. Giving up on my calling wasn’t an option, so I allowed myself to ask some very important questions. How do you get moving when you have no energy left? How do you refuel when you feel totally depleted? Finding the answers to these questions meant spending some time with Hezekiah and God’s people in 2 Chronicles 29. Hezekiah was facing a starting over…