Can WE Change Facebook?

 

We have all witnessed Facebook taking a turn for the worst in terms of content. After the election was over, I was SURE that the posts would lighten up, but they seem to have only gotten worse - louder somehow, angrier and more divisive. Just when I think that it can’t get uglier, it does. 

As I quickly scroll through the posts, looking for the little nuggets of family updates and funny animal videos, I am overwhelmed by the hatred that people currently have for each other, and slightly confused by the need to “stand up for what we believe in” on FACEBOOK.

I had the thought the other day as I felt myself reacting to someone’s post, what are these statements actually doing? Why do we feel the need to virtually throw our opinions out for all of the world to read without context or explanation? Can the reader understand in any way where we are coming from when they are on the other side of a screen? 

We seem to be done attempting real conversations about hard things and rather, throw a fast ball right into someone’s face and instead of asking if they’re alright, we just walk away. That’s the luxury of the computer screen. 

It’s inhumane, y’all, and we’ve all done it. But, when did we lose our sensitivity to others? At the end of the day, we’re all people - maybe with differing viewpoints - but all just people. 

Maybe we should all take a hard look at not just what we are saying, but how we are saying it?There seems to be no difference in the tone of the posts that Christians make and non-Christians make; no difference in the right side or the left side.

The bible is clear that we are to love our neighbor as ourselves - even the virtual ones - but is t also clear that WORDS are important in accomplishing this? Actions certainly speak louder than words, but let’s be real - words do speak. And they stick. They can’t be unsaid or erased, even when forgiven. They tend to linger. 

Sharp words, even deeply felt, only serve to make the gap between “us” and “them” wider, not narrower. Speaking Truth in love is designed to be within intimate conversations one on one, allowing sincerity and genuine love to come through to those on the receiving end. Harsh words on a screen are just that - harsh. 

So let me ask this of us: are we building each other up as much as we are tearing each other down? Do people know us for what we are for or for what we are against? 

“Let no unwholesome word proceed from your mouth, but only such a word as is good for edification according to the ned of the moment, so that it will give grace to those who hear. Do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, by whom you were sealed for the day of redemption. Let all bitterness and wrath and anger and clamor and slander be put away from you, along with all malice. Be kind to one another, tender-hearted, forgiving each other, just as God in Christ also has forgiven you.” Ephesians 4:29-32

This tells us that it in fact is important to the Lord how we talk - even on social media. Now, let’s not get all technical here and say that the words aren’t spewing from our mouths but instead our fingers, because God always deals with the heart issue and out of our heart comes our words. “But the things that proceed out of the mouth come from the heart.” Matthew 15:18. The words we say, the words we whisper and, yes, the words we write. 

Lord, let us be women known for building others up, not tearing others down. Let us be the ones that change this divisive environment into a beautiful forum for love and admiration. 

God created us each with different ideas, bents and circumstances so that we can think for ourselves and form our own opinions. We shouldn’t be surprised that we will never agree on everything - we just won’t. We live in a broken world, and a free country. What if we celebrated the idea that we get to have an opinion instead of getting angry that “theirs” isn’t like “ours”. 

We can choose to focus on places of agreement instead of places of argument. When something comes into view that makes our hearts break, makes us see that there is terrible injustice in the world and maybe even moves us to anger - let’s be women who put down the iPhone and DO something about it.

Gather people - your actual people - and make a plan. Visit your local representation, write letters, make phone calls - but let’s be the ones who stop throwing stones across a computer screen. The world - our country, especially - will be better off and WE can be the ones that start making a change! Let's not be absent from social media, but be uplifting on social media - replacing words, articles and comments of hatred with love. Can you imagine the movement that we can start? 

Choosing Obedience

"Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our affliction so that we will be able to comfort those who are in any affliction with the comfort with which we ourselves are comforted by God. For just as the sufferings of Christ are ours in abundance, so also our comfort is abundant through Christ. But if we are afflicted, it is for your comfort and salvation." 2 Corinthians 1:3-6a

Holding my steaming hot cup of coffee I sat on my sofa and had a familiar revelation. I am a weary momma, and I suppose that in some way - all women find their souls weary in various moments. Swollen eyed and foggy headed, from lack of restful sleep, I still dug into the passage before me and the Holy Spirit graciously met me where I sat.

When I am afflicted, it is so that God can comfort me. If I never needed comfort then I wouldn't need comforting. Being afflicted, experiencing failure and dead end after dead end is the way to experience God's grace and mercy at it's finest.

The times in my life that I've experienced God's hand most profoundly are the same times that anxiety, brokenness, loneliness and tiredness was most the prevalent, not the least. There has rarely been a time that I daily saw Him working miracles when I wasn’t in the middle of deep discouragement. When I am forced to depend on God to meet my emotional, physical and spiritual needs, I am stuck clinging to even the smallest ray of encouragement.

Are you uncomfortable today? Are you grasping for the hope that God provides or struggling to experience His perfect peace? There is hope today, sweet friend. He sees you. He's got you. He is, indeed, walking right with you. 

Often I find myself weary, I do, but sometimes I wonder if we should begin questioning if we sometimes we can actually be too comfortable.

We can all agree that there are times in our faith journey that we can choose whether to trust God, stepping out in faith, or instead choose to stay in the safe zone.

If we want our faith to grow, we have to give it opportunities to do so. Staying comfortable is not one of them. I can read my bible all day long about who God is. I can even believe that He is who He says He is. But I cannot fully experience the faithfulness of God while remaining in my own comfort the way that I can experience Him while stepping out on the edge of all things reasonable and secure.

I am not at all suggesting that I should intentionally do things that make me miserable and uncomfortable. I am simply pointing out that perhaps I should take a look at the choices I make on a daily basis and why I make them. Am I willing to sacrifice anything for the Kingdom - safety, comfort, time, pride, money, reputation?

For  me, I have decided that I have been safe long enough. I have guarded my comfort and my time long enough. I have stayed silent long enough. Has it been long enough for you, too? Are you ready to step out in the big and small too? 

What does this look like, practically, though?

Maybe it means walking across the street and asking your grouchy neighbor over to dinner. I know you’re thinking that he will most likely shoot you down and probably holler at your kid for walking on his grass, but perhaps there is something deeper behind his grouchiness? This will be uncomfortable. There will be a million reasons why you don’t want to do this - and can’t do this today or the next day or the next - but is this what you’re called to do? Is this the nudging inside your soul that you keep ignoring for the sake of time and pride? Do it. Say yes. 

Maybe it means signing up to mentor someone else. Yes, this will take time and maybe even some money for coffee each week. Of course you feel like you have nothing to offer, but don’t you actually have a whole bunch to offer? Is this the call God is placing on your heart - to bring up the next generation of women for Him? Say yes, friend. We need you to say yes. 

Maybe it is going on a mission trip, sharing your faith with your coworker or going to a marriage conference. Maybe it’s giving money, taking a meal down the street or reaching out to the Muslim families in your community, getting to know them on a personal basis and letting them know they are loved. None of this feels like it’s a fun idea, but God stretches us so that we can see Him work in and through us. 

Maybe you need to physically move. Perhaps God is asking you to switch jobs, or quit your job to stay home with your kiddos or pursue your dreams. Is He asking you to go back to work full time? Maybe He's asking you to sell your car, or sell your house. Maybe he's asking you to open up your home to a foster child or a down and out family. 

Whatever it is that you are on the fence about, whether it’s big or small or sort of in between, can I just encourage you today to say a resounding YES to the Lord? We will not regret it because we will see Him come through in ways we would not believe before. He tells us in scripture that He rewards those who are faithful in the small. What small steps of obedience can we take today to make an impact for the Kingdom? 

When we say yes to God, relationships will be fostered, bridges will be built, new adventures will begin but most of all our faith will be blessed. Choose to get uncomfortable today, friends, because we will get to experience the Comforter in all of His glory together. 

STOP Believing Those Lies!

Have you ever found yourself repeating words in your head that started out as a lie but now you are wondering if they’re true? When people call you names do you think, “wow, maybe that is right - maybe I really am like that?”

A few years ago, I got wind that a friend had suggested I was a less-than-friendly type of person. The reason it stung so badly was because I felt like I was actually going out of my way in that particular friendship. It was exactly the opposite of how I felt about myself, and what truly was in my heart.

Instead of reaching out to her, I shrunk back and became bitter. Those words continued to ring in my ears for the better part of two years. It filtered into all of my friendships - old and new. I stopped reaching out to old friends because I had convinced myself that it would never be good enough. I shrunk back from new friendships telling myself “what is the point.” 

I let her words fill my soul.

Have you ever been there?  Has there been a time in your life when you allowed someone else’s words to define who you are? Do you feel stuck there like I did? Let me encourage you today, you do not have to stay there!

Listen, words are powerful. A friend’s words are mighty when they lift us up, affirm us and encourage us. There is nothing like hearing from someone you love that you can, in fact, keep going. But on the opposite end of the spectrum, a friend’s words - or even someone you barely know, for that matter - can remain in your ears for a long time when the words were meant to tear you down.

I let this woman’s words echo in my heart for entirely too long. When that happens, the words begin to snowball and become way bigger (and worse) than they originally were. No matter how long I tried on my own to fight it, they began to define who I was. 

God is so good, and I knew deep down that this yucky person I had built myself up in my mind to be, wasn’t truly who I was. When I finally decided to get a grip, put my big girl panties on and be done with it, I had to realize that this was not her fault. It was mine. And I needed to take ownership of that. The ugly that was filling my soul was MY junk, not just her words. Just to be clear, this was - and still is - a tremendous battle for me. It was not as if a switch flipped and I just felt better, it remains a struggle to this day. 

Satan would love it if he could kill us with our own thoughts, y'all. He would love nothing more than to take one simple sentence that someone said way back when to torture us into thinking we are not worthy to see the light of day, let alone approach the throne of grace with confidence.

Truth be told, when this friend's words rocked me to my core, I was still grieving from my miscarriage. Don't think that was a coincidence, y'all. Satan knew exactly what he was doing, just like he still knows exactly what he's doing. He is crafty and he wants you and he wants me and he wants any woman who's heart is after the Lord. He wants to discourage us and beat us down and make it all seem so real and hard-core and bigger and badder than these simple words were ever intended to be. 

The only way I have found to consistently combat Satan in my thought life is to replace those words with His Truth.

“Whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is of good repute, if there is any excellence and if anything worthy of praise, dwell on these things.” Philippians 4:8

This verse has become a qualifier when thoughts begin to rage in my head. I ask myself: Is it true? Is it lovely? Does it bring honor to myself or that person? If the answer is no, I begin to repeat that verse over and over until my thoughts move on to something else. In my head, y'all - no one likes a crazy person! It sounds so simple, but make no mistake that this is still a hard discipline to put into practice!

Sweet women of the Lord, can we not only work to be gentler with our words but stronger in our sense of self? Can we look for ways to shake Satan loose and inform him of who we are in Jesus?

No matter what words were said or what lies were spread, the Truth is that we are daughters of the King who is not shaken by this world, those words or our lies.

We are loved, we are worthy, we are unashamed and we are His. This is the Truth y’all. No one and no one’s words can take this away from us. May we live in these truths this week!

Letting Go at 35

I have been forewarned by several people in my life that 35 is a rough birthday. I guess that's the good thing about being the youngest in your group of friends - these wise souls have gone before me and can tell me what to expect when I get there. I say that with a smile on my face because I love being the youngest. I love looking forward with them and being challenged with how they are living out their lives. I love being the youngest.


But this youngest friend is turning one year older in a few months (exactly two) and I've been doing a slight bit of reflecting on life. The things that I love, the things that I want to change. Mostly, I have no regrets - I don't really look back and think "I wish I had done ___" but I do do a whole lot of dreaming about the future. I might not have regrets, but I do want to make some changes - and if there's any time to make adjustments - it's a milestone birthday.

So here we go.

5 Thinks that I want to let go of at 35.

1. My 25 year old, pre-kids body image.

It’s not even about weight, y’all. It’s NOT. (wink face, hand on my hips). It’s about this image I have in my mind of what I looked like when I was 25. How unreasonable is it for me to think I should still look like that! Of course I look different now! Who wouldn’t look different with 10,000 more miles and 3 kids and 10 more years of marriage under their belt? (The secret answer here is someone who has had major plastic surgery and botox, but that's neither here nor there for the time being).

I want to let go of that image. I want to stop trying to “get back there” and instead journey forward to wellness, whatever that might look like on my 35 year old body.

2. Fear of Offending Others.

I’ve only recently realized that my fear of offending others has held me back from many friendships over the years. In an effort to not put myself out there, I generally say nothing at all which then makes me seem like someone I’m not. I want to thoughtfully mean what I say and say what I mean. I want to love others well - this includes the people who are hard to love.

By letting go of this fear, I can diversify my friendships, my Christian walk and my parenting style. This is by no means an effort to say whatever is on my mind without thinking about others' feelings. This is all to say that I don't want to supress the Holy Spirit anymore. I want Him to fill my mouth, my heart and my actions and remove all fear.

3. Striving for Perfection in our Marriage

For too long, I have tried for "the perfect marriage" instead of the best marriage I can have. I am letting go of the idea of perfect because our marriage, with the mess and the love, the fullness, the disagreements, the makeups, the imperfect child-rearing and the falling asleep in the first 15 minutes of a movie that drives me nuts…. that kind of marriage stretches me, y'all. It makes me better. It spurs me on not only in my walk with the Lord but also in my walk toward my husband. It endears him to me and me to him.

It is not my goal in life to be comfortable. I don't want an easy life (on most days). I want a life that points me to the Father and I am so grateful I get to walk with Jeff on that path. Gosh, I am humbled thinkng of how God ordained our marriage. How dare I think that it's not enough?

I will strive to be consistently content with the state of marriage. The easy and hard times. The pretty and the ugly. I will serve Jeff more and let go of selfishness.



4. “My” Time

At some point after having kids, I started to refer to certain hours of the day as “my time”. I know that any momma out there knows exactly what I'm talking about.  We all need it - especially those of us who are introverts, but over the years I have begun to get irritated when My Time is interrupted. I’ve so fiercely guarded this that when the kids come down stairs too early the first thing they hear is me hollering “it’s not time!” I hate that, y'all!!

I will let go of it being “my” time and realize it’s all HIS time. That does NOT mean that I will give up getting up early and setting aside time for myself to write, pray, think and paint. It just means that if (and when) it gets interrupted or needs to take a back seat for my kids, for a sick neighbor or a household chore to get done, I don’t want it to make or break my whole day.

5. Keeping Houseplants Alive

It’s gut-check time, y’all, and this is an area that has frustrated me for 15 years! I have grown a relatively green thumb when it comes to plants outside, but when it comes to the plants I have inside, y’all, I just kill them. There is the rare exception (the plant that has miraculously stayed alive for over a year) but for the most part, they just die a sad and slow death.

The thing is that IKEA has really cheap house plants. And so do Home Depot and Lowe’s. So instead of forsaking all things green and alive in my house, and instead of getting worked up and frustrated when things look sickly and die, I’m just going to set aside some time and money to be able to replace them when they die. It may seem like a terrible waste of money, but it is proven to make the air in your house cleaner. Or something like that. And it helps in the winter time with a mood boost.

As I grow older (and wiser), I want to be able to make adjustments in my life for the better. I want to easily let go of things that aren’t working and welcome new ideas that add to our quality of life. God is so gracious to grant me another year on this precious earth to live for His glory, so why would I want to live anything short of all out?!

Do you have anything you want to let go of this year? Anything new that you are adding into your routine? I would love to hear about it! It might be just the thing I need!

Love

"Vindicate the weak and the fatherless. Do justice to the afflicted and destitute. Rescue the weak and needy; deliver them out of the hand of the wicked." Psalm 83:3-4

Unless you've been living under a rock for the last several months, you have noted that the amount of finger pointing from one corner to another has escalated to an all time high. Elected officials, along with appointed ones, are having their character questioned, having to defend their life choices and are being berated for not agreeing with the supposed "majority" of Americans at every turn. 

Forgive me for saying this, but I think most people - even the ones who do not agree with your "side" - are just trying to do the best they can. I know that I am biased, and there are definitely some people who deserve their character to be questioned, believe me, I know that, but it also tears my heart in two when I read hateful words toward men and women who are sacrificing a tremendous amount to serve us and fight on our behalf. 

Besides, I really hate to break it to you, but Government programs, border control, open borders, Medicaid, homeless shelters will never be the solution to the worlds problems. Can they assist? For sure. But they are not, and never will be, the answer. We are. 

God isn't telling the government to rescue the weak and the needy. He is telling us to. 

So, let me ask a hard question of all us. What are we doing ... what are we actually doing ... to rescue the weak and the needy? Call me crazy, but I don't think posting articles and throwing bombs on twitter and Facebook is doing much more than stirring the pot.

Can I challenge us to get a little more uncomfortable than sitting behind a computer lashing out at the world? To be a little more radical in our efforts than just sending a letter to our congressman about the refugee crisis or securing our borders? What can we do to actually create change in this heated political climate?

It might be quite simple. 

Be a good neighbor. No, be a great neighbor.

As Christians, we are certainly called to care for global missions and fight for injustices overseas and even at our borders. But not at the expense of fighting for the people right next door. 

We are willing to fight on behalf of refugees who are living in war torn countries, but are we even halfway interested in fighting for the neighbor down the street going through a terrible divorce and perhaps depression? We are willing to fight for our borders to be open to everyone, but are we willing to open our homes to a Muslim family in our neighborhood for dinner? Are we really just hypocrites who want to appear like we love everyone but really, when it comes down to it, aren't willing to sacrifice any of our own money or time or resources to love the people 100 feet away? 

Who have we become? What have we become?

Whether you are for open or closed borders, whether you fight for life or for choice, whether you live in the inner city or a posh suburban neighborhood, we can all choose to love our neighbors.

What if we, the church, began to build communities of great neighbors? How can all of this hateful mud-slinging NOT be silenced? Just think about it. We can start to see people for who they are, not just what they do or don't stand for. We can begin see past skin color or religious background when we invite them into our homes and we go into theirs. 

And it can all start with the church.

Love is patient when the neighbor doesn't even make eye contact with you. Love is kind when someone has a baby and needs a meal and a hug. Love is not boastful or proud or rude when a family members lays into you about their opposing political viewpoint. Love does not act unbecomingly when a new friend inserts themselves in your business. Love is not provoked with family drama. Love rejoices in the Truth and it never fails. 

Love loves. Love seeks to understand. Love endures. Love bears all things, even the hard ones. 

Love isn't the absence of borders or the presence of them. Love is listening, cherishing and serving. Love is actually seeing someone... no matter what color, what religion, what political party. Love is pushing past all of that, intentionally and deliberately to just be a friend. 

Scripture never tells believers that we will agree on everything. In fact, it is full of conflict resolution, as well as unresolved conflict. It does, however, tell us to love our neighbor as ourself and to stop throwing these dang stones at one another. 

Think about the revolution that could happen if we started today. Think about one person that needs love today and go to them. Don't wait for a refugee to come to your door, it probably won't happen. But that neighbor needs hope today and it can come from you. 

It will be a love revolution. 

Let's start today. 

Salt and Light // A Post on Faith

So, the election is now officially over - we have a new president. Can we all just take a shower now and cleanse ourselves from all that was unholy about the last 12 months?

I mean, really, y'all.

Can I share a secret with you though?

No matter who is president, Jesus is still on His throne.

We are all going to be okay. We might be begging Jesus to come back soon enough - if we aren't already - but we can also remind ourselves that this will never be our home.

It seems to me, that over the course of the last year, a lot of areas have become gray for the Christian. I'm not sure why that is - maybe because there is so much injustice in the world, so much hate, so much deep (and valid) dissatisfaction with our leaders. But also over the course of the last year, I have been completely convicted that  biblical truth is Truth, no matter which way I slice it. It is uncomfortable, it is unpopular, it is controversial - but God's Word, in our house, will always be the standard. No watering it down, no making it fit my fleshly answers, no fluffing it up. It just is.

There was a quote from Beth Moore making it's way around Instagram and Facebook last week from Passion :: "You will watch a generation of Christians - OF CHRISTIANS - set the Bible aside in an attempt to become more like Jesus. And stunningly it will sound completely plausible. This will be perhaps the cleverest of all the devil's schemes in your generation. Sacrifice Truth for Love's sake. And you will rise or fall based upon whether you will sacrifice one for the other. Will you have the courage to live in the tension of both Truth AND love?"

It got me to thinking... we have somehow made this an issue of Truth vs. Love. When really it is supposed to be Truth IN Love. Not either or. Not one above the other. The Holy Spirit living in us enables to have both in all areas. 

"Speaking the truth in love, we are to grow up in all aspects into Him who is the head, even Christ, from whom the whole body, being fitted and held together by what every joint supplies, according to the proper working of each individual part, causes the growth of the body for the building up of itself in love." (Ephesians 4:15, 16)

Some translations say the whole truth here. The idea was that a mature believer is not supposed to leave anything out when sharing about Jesus and what is required to walk in faith with him. Not the good stuff - Jesus loves EVERYONE - but not the bad stuff either, like how can we knowingly live in sin while trying to also live in fellowship with him?

This includes the hard issues, the ones that we might not understand God's reasoning, the ones that we don't necessarily want to agree with. No matter how hard the issue, the question will always remains: do I believe that the Bible is Truth or do I not?

It's not a matter of which translation we use, it's a matter of Who is translating. Is it the Holy Spirit or is it our flesh? Are we viewing scripture through Jesus's eyes or are we allowing our culture to influence how we read it? Are we coming to scripture open or are we already convinced which way we want to believe and search for chosen verses to back us up?

If I hold my Truth to myself - what good is it? Jesus told us to be salt and light. What good is the salt if we aren't salting anything?

My word for the year is Love. I want to be love. I want to love others well. My neighbors, my friends, my family, those I agree with, those I don't. Those who look like me and those who don't. Those who hold my convictions and those who don't. This is at the core of my heart this year.

But I will not - I cannot - forsake Truth for love.

There will be differing opinions than mine. But I can choose to overlook differences and focus on similarities. I can choose to put down my sword and extend a helping hand, a compassionate ear, a warm meal to anyone who needs it. I can open my home to those who share different opinions and convictions than me. I cannot, however, act like my convictions do not exist - or worse yet - convince myself that society is changing and thereby voiding the Truth of the scripture that I read every morning.

Is this hard?

Absolutely.

Is this impossible?

Close.

I think Jennie Allen described the paradox of this balance so eloquently :: "This isn’t easy. Most of God’s callings on my life, actually require God in my life. He didn’t build us to hold all the tensions and live them out perfectly. I want to say this clearly: Friends, in some way we all are getting this wrong. We’re getting this wrong, because we aren’t Jesus. But we do have Jesus. We have this model of a man so radically willing to lay His life down for others, He did so. He walked with all types of people, in grace and truth, and used less words than we do. And we have His Word and His Spirit in us to help us do the same."

Y'all - as believers we MUST strive for this balance. We have to. If we strive for love over truth, we are at risk of losing any resemblance of Biblical Truth. If we instead tend to strive for Truth instead of love, we are then at risk for passing down hate and legalism. 

"Let me tell you why you are here. You’re here to be salt-seasoning that brings out the God-flavors of this earth. If you lose your saltiness, how will people taste godliness? You’ve lost your usefulness and will end up in the garbage. “Here’s another way to put it: You’re here to be light, bringing out the God-colors in the world. God is not a secret to be kept. We’re going public with this, as public as a city on a hill. If I make you light-bearers, you don’t think I’m going to hide you under a bucket, do you? I’m putting you on a light stand. Now that I’ve put you there on a hilltop, on a light stand—shine! Keep open house; be generous with your lives. By opening up to others, you’ll prompt people to open up with God, this generous Father in heaven." Matthew 5:13-16, The Message

Jesus called us to be the salt so people will be able to taste godliness. Salt in a salt box does nothing. Just the right amount of salt on roasted vegetables brings out flavor that otherwise wouldn't be there. Potatoes without salt? Bland. Potatoes with salt (and butter and cheese and sour cream)? Perfection. We are not to hide ourselves, or our message. We are called to get out there, be the light of the world and SHINE.

What is perfect about this passage is that it tells us how we can shine.

Keep an open house.

Be generous with our lives.

Open up to others - and that will open people's hearts with God.

Don't confuse love with acceptance of sin. But don't confuse Truth with pointing out all that is wrong with someone's life either.

Like Jennie said, we WILL get this wrong. I do. Every. single. day. Despite any and all efforts I make. I err on one side or the other. But the point is to make an attempt. 

Let's all make an attempt to understand all different kinds of people. To stop judging and find a way - even a small way - to love people wherever they are. To hold onto our Truth but still seek to build relationships. To stand our ground but go to others who are hurting. To look for lonely people and instead of telling them how they're doing it all wrong, build them up. 

If we all seek the balance of Truth in Love, our whole nation will be better off, and as a body of believers, we will be able to make His Name known. Leave encouraged today, friends. We can strive to do it better together.

5 Tips to a Stellar Quiet Time

Do you feel like life is going one hundred miles an hour and you just want to make. it. stop? Do you ever think to yourself "I just need a moment of silence?" I think that as women we all feel like this at some point or another during each day.

I found a long time ago that when I get up early - before anyone else in my house - and am able to sit in the stillness - in quiet - I feel much more refreshed when that first bundle of noise joy comes running down the stairs. When I make time for the quiet, His voice becomes louder and my circumstances, busyness and hectic days seem smaller. It's a centering for my soul, if you will.

Do you find time for quieting your soul? 

In reality, some of y'all can't get up any earlier than you do, right? You might have a baby who isn't sleeping through the night yet, so any extra minute of sleep you can get should be taken at it's fullest. Maybe you work a job that requires getting there before the sun rises. Just because you can't find stillness in the morning, doesn't mean you can't find it at all. But you do have to make it happen. Because stillness won't just happen, right?

I put together a few tips that I've found helpful in making the most out of my "quiet time". Remember, though, don't put this time in a box, so to speak. It doesn't have to look like A + B = C. It's however you feel led, however God speaks to you, not how He speaks to me. These are just a few things that help me feel settled in the morning.

1. Be Ready //

This is maybe what I struggle with the most. As I wait for my coffee to brew from the keurig, I tend to stumble around trying to find my Bible left in some other part of the house. I wander around from room to room in the darkness - because there's no way I'm turning bright lights on before my first sip of coffee - trying to find my supplies. I have certain inky pens that my kids husband are always stealing that I mark up my Bible with. I have certain highlighters - again, that get stolen - that I often can't find in the early morning hours. And before I know it, I've wasted 10 precious minutes just trying to get my rear in gear. So this is the most important, especially if you are super short on time. BE READY.

What are you going to read? Are you reading straight scripture or do you have a devotional? I go through seasons of reading books along with scripture, although right now I just started Ann Voskamp's devotional which seems to be a little hard for me to read with my groggy morning brain. If you are just starting and have very little time, I suggest Jesus Calling by Sarah Young. It's super short but PACKED with Truth. I also like looking up the scriptures in my own Bible. There's just something about flipping those pages that gives great peace.

Answer this question : what gets you distracted during your time with the Lord? Is it your to-do list? Is it your laundry buzzing? Is it checking the time? Do whatever you need to do to stop getting distracted when you sit down so that your time with the Lord is well-spent.

2. Be Consistent //

Make this Quiet Time a part of your daily rhythm, trying to do it at the same time every day.  Is it first thing in the morning? Is it during your lunch break? Is it when you get home from work? Is it at Starbucks? Get into a routine. This will make it easier for you to accomplish daily and you will come to crave it, the more you do it.

Also, try to make it happen in the same place every day. For me, it's in my hot pink chair in my studio. I write here, I read here, I think best here. And since this is where I tend to spend time with God, it triggers reflection when I walk by and remember my time with the Lord that morning.

3. Go Deeper //

This is a new thing for me this year. I've always been a book first, scripture second gal. But this year I've been reading scripture through like a book (not the easiest or most fun thing) and then if there is a book on the subject, picking that up and reading it to affirm scripture - not the other way around.

When reading scripture, if you don't understand what you're reading, keep re-reading it until you get a grasp on it... scripture tells us we have the power to interpret scripture - it's the Holy Spirit. So when you get frustrated, ask him for help. Use footnotes in your bible or an online resource. I have found the Matthew Henry commentary to be super helpful when I get stuck. You can find it several places when you google it.

4. Pray //

My favorite thing to do - the best thing I've ever done - is to keep a prayer journal. Now that I am writing here, I am not as good about this as I should be. It's like I only have a certain amount of words for the day and they get used up as an offering right here. But my spiritual life changed when I started consistently keeping a prayer journal. Sometimes it would just have things listed out. Sometimes it would be deep cries from my heart. Sometimes it would be shallow and superficial. But they have become treasures to me. Praying for my kids, for my marriage, for our circumstances at the time, etc.

If you want to change your prayer life, start journaling. 

5. Reflect on Him during the day //

I feel like this has taken my quiet time to a new level. I try to reflect on whatever I read in the morning throughout the day. So, say that I didn't understand what I read - or I didn't feel like there was any application for me in my reading one morning. Throughout the day, I try to ask God to reveal to me a Truth from the passage. Teach me something new about Himself, about my sin, about my attitude, etc. And generally - when I am intentional about doing this - He does. Sometimes it might even be at the end of the day.

For example, when I read about Samson + Delilah. I didn't see any application in the story for my own life. I read it - as I have a million times before in Sunday School - and thought, "well he's dumb." And I left my quiet times for those few days sort of frustrated and feeling unsatisfied. Until the day when I read the last bit of Samson's story. He calls upon the Lord one last time to pass judgement on all of these people who were making a mockery of Him, and God answers and prophesy is fulfilled.

Later that day, as I watched election coverage, God pressed into my heart that sometimes He chooses to use unholy people (Samson) for holy purposes. Samson believed in God, yes, but he also didn't follow God's laws. He was a sinner - and honestly, from the scripture - didn't seem to care to change that. But God used him to carry out His holy plan. Do you see how that may be applicable to the election?

The bottom line is this. God has so many lessons to teach us from His Word, and when we take the time to sit with Him, get still and listen, He will guide us. He will open up the flood gates and teach us. I hope this is encouraging, not overwhelming!! You can find a time to do this, even on the busiest of days! Do you have any tips for getting it done? I'd love to hear!!

Purpose In the Waiting.

It occurred to me the other day that there was a heck of a lot of waiting in the Bible.

Abraham and Sarah waited for their child - the one that God had promised them many years before she conceived.

David waited to be King - and while he waited, he had to hide in caves from the current King who wanted to take his life.

Moses waited for the promised land - and had to wait until after he died to see it.

Shoot, there are 400 years of silence in between the Old and the New Testament. Actually, the entire Old Testament is waiting on the Messiah. And now we are waiting on him again, aren't we?

Much of our life as believers will be spent in the quiet and stillness of the waiting room. I normally welcome quiet... I actually think I crave it (as most mommas probably do). But when God is quiet, I get anxious, tense and even doubtful. I am a huge dreamer but not so much of a doer, so when my dreams seem to be planted in me from the Lord and then there is no action on His part immediately after, I start to wonder "wait, did I hear Him right? Is this the direction that He said He wanted me to run in?"

As the reality of the waiting game sets in, my heart shifts focus and I lose sight of the goal of walking daily in obedience. When I take my eyes off of God amidst the discouragement, my thoughts begin to center instead on my shortcomings and all of the reasons why I shouldn't believe Him in the first place. All the reasons I deserve to be let down and all of the ways that I know I will fall short.

Have you ever felt discouraged in the waiting? Have you ever felt as though you were doing your part, but God isn't doing His? That you are trying your hardest to be obedient, but the believing-He-will-fill-His-promises part is starting to dwindle?

I want to encourage all of us today, y'all! God - even in the stillness - is faithful. But we must decide to see that, even when we don't feel it. There are three things can fill us with hope as we wait.

God is a God of details and even while He is working said details together for His purposes, He wants us to be a part of them. He has us here in the waiting on purpose. He is not only working out our path forward while we wait, but there is also an assignment within the waiting, right? Is it to seek Him deeper? Does He want us to cultivate new relationships in this season? Is He asking us to rest? Does He want us to take care of some sin in this wait?

There is purpose in the stillness because there are people in the stillness.

Choosing to wait on purpose is difficult as the stillness drags on,  but today, I will believe that there is purpose right here.

God is also a God of timing and y'all - I hate that I can't control this part of life. When projects move forward, when I see fruit from my labor, when a relationship dies or when a relationship blooms. I am not in control. He is. And as I grow older wiser, I realize when I look back on the still seasons in my life, the moments that movement started were ones I wouldn't have chosen but that were perfect for so many reasons. I think I know my needs, but He knows them so much deeper than I do. He knows what my heart, mind and body need that I will never understand and only He can meet those needs - and sometimes it is in the wait.

So today, I will believe that His timing is best.

Finally, God is a God of promises. I feel like we should all take a deep breath here, shouldn't we? Breathe in His faithfulness and breathe out His grace. As believers we know this to be true. We choose to believe that the Bible is true and our past experiences with God most likely point to that Truth as well. Now, to remember this during the wait... now that is a challenge, isn't it?

A friend shared this verse with me last week and it has brought me much peace to cling to while I sit in this waiting room of sorts, and I hope it will for you too. "Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for He who promised is faithful." Hebrews 10:23.

Think back on the promises that He has filled in your life. Think of all the ways that He has come through for you before. Has He provided peace peace that passes all understanding? Has He taken your mess and woven it into something crazy good? Has He given you inexplicable joy when it didn't make sense? Has He proven Himself faithful even after the wait?

Today, I will believe that He fulfills His promises, because He has before and He will again.

Even when it seems that God has forgotten me I must believe that He is still there, working things out in my midst and bringing people into my path that are not there by chance. I am thankful to serve a God who understands my innermost needs, the timing that I wouldn't choose and the bigger picture. We can serve Him faithfully today in the wait we we decide to believe He is still there.

I pray this is a message of hope for one of you precious readers out there today. I am so blessed by your encouragement and His encouragement through you! Have a great week, friends!

What Would You Do?

In Shauna Niequist’s new book, Present Over Perfect, she poses the question, “if someone gave you a blank calendar and all of the money in the world, what would you do?” 

What would I do?

If there was no school pickup, football practice or soccer games… what would I do? If I didn’t have to run errands, schedule babysitters and go to business dinners, how would I spend my time? Who would I be? How would I spend my money? 

It’s an interesting question and as I asked myself an answer immediately surfaced for me:

Nothing. 

I would do a whole heck a lot of nothing. 

I would sleep. I would binge watch netflix until my eyes got blurry. I’d eat cheese balls and chocolate covered graham crackers from trader joe’s. I would sit in the stillness and quiet and feel the stress melt off my shoulders. 

My immediate, gut reaction answer is that I would, honestly, do nothing. 

But then I started to let that question marinate. Because the truth is that there are times that I do turn everything off and do nothing. But my stress doesn’t melt away and often I feel a bit emptier than I did before. So, as I step into the fall-season craziness out of the still wilderness season… I want to really ask myself what would I do. 

Here it is. 

I would walk. Every day, maybe. In the quiet of the morning, just as the birds started to chirp. I would listen to my footsteps quicken and talk to the Lord as He whispers back in the stillness. 

I would get ready. I would actually take a shower and attempt a life of cleanliness (even in this hot texas weather). I would put makeup on and get dressed - and not in sweatpants, leggings or workout short, but in for-real, grown up clothes.

I would bake bread and my house would smell of heaven. 

On that note, I would cook. I would spend way more time outside. I would drink my coffee with both hands. I would read. I would make play dough creatures with the kids. I would blow bubbles. I would ride a bike. I would write. I would take my kids lunch at school more often. I would take weekend adventures with my family. I would spend more time at the lake. 

None of these things are outlandish - or even unrealistic if we didn’t have anything else on our schedule, that is. 

But the fact is we do. 

The fact is that I do have carpool, football practice and gymnastics. I do have three kids, a husband who travels, campaign responsibilities, a shop to keep up, food to cook (out of necessity), grocery stores to get to, errands to run and a yard to mow. 

We have said no to everything we possibly can - and want to. Probably more than we want to. We do guard our time. We do schedule wisely. And yet I have time for none of the things that bring me joy and what do I normally do about it?

Nothing. 

But that, my friends, is about to change. 

I am realizing that my life is full, yes, as many of your lives are full. But it’s not lived to the full. 

So here’s what I’m setting out to do: 

I’m going to go to bed earlier. And actually, that simply means (for me) to get into bed earlier. I’m going to keep the TV off and I’m going to read. I have a stack of books on my nightstand waiting to be read, and this is my week to read them. Maybe I’ll sleep better which means maybe I’ll get up earlier which means maybe I’ll actually exercise. 

I’m going to bake bread on Wednesday. I started this ritual when Jeff was traveling extensively and I’m going to bring it back, y’all… because nothing compares to homemade bread. (I’ll have to definitely make sure that I work out on that day, I guess.)

I’m going to write… and it might not be good, but I’m going to write anyway. 

I’m going to paint - and make. Just for me. Not for anyone else. I need to fall in love with making again. It fills me up, it was how I was created, it is a part of me. And I’ve lost it. That’s what happens when making becomes a business. It becomes more about the business than the making. The business has stolen the joy right out of the making… and that is no fun. Ain’t nobody got time for that. 

I’m going to put pumpkins out and get a fall candle and make chili. Heck, I might even light a fire. Not because it’s cold, but because fall brings me so much joy, and it is technically fall, people. 

I’m going to stop filling up my time with aimlessness in an effort to escape the life’s busy reality and start being more purposeful with my time.

I want to live full out. Give it my all. Because I’m not promised tomorrow so I will make the most of today. Even when I’m weary, my mind is on overload and my hand can’t write my list of to dos fast enough. 

I’m not saying that I am willing to forsake my must do’s for my want to’s, but I am saying that I want to do more of them. I want to make time and space to fill my heart with the adventures and joy that were meant just for me.

And now I’m going to turn off my computer and turn my want to’s into to do’s. Won’t you join me today? Won’t you purpose to do just one thing that brings you JOY today?? 

Moving Forward

 Shop this sign now.

We walked her into the school as she held her big brother's hand rather tightly. He hugged her and kissed her face before Jeff and I took her to sit down at her desk. Having a big brother at school really does make the transition so much easier for her - God knew what He was doing when He ordered those two.

I held her tightly and Jeff whispered to her the two things that He says every morning.

Be a leader.

It's always right to do the right thing.

As I watched them, I felt the tears welling up in my eyes. Yes, she is the middle child, but she is also our baby girl. She's the one who has a sweet heart that is untainted by the world. The one who is innocent and loving (and bossy). The one who never wants to miss out, but also has a healthy fear of dangerous things (praise Jesus).

The thought runs through my mind : She will thrive. The thought is there, but the wave of emotion that breathed "this is it" hit me all of a sudden and I just had to get out of that room.

I kissed her quickly, squeezed her tightly and went outside to do the easier thing + take Brady to his third grade room. (Third grade drop off is WAY less dramatic than a kindergarten one.) But once I hit the hallway I heard all of the "how are you"s with the sad, understanding look on people's faces and I nearly lost it.

It was silly. I'm not that mom, y'all. I'm not. Or at least that's what I kept telling myself.

Of course, we are beyond thrilled she is in Kindergarten. We are thrilled she is at this school with this teacher this year. THRILLED. So where was all of this emotion coming from?

This is when I realized that the mix of sadness and joy really stems from what this moment - this day - means for me.

It means I'm getting older. Which isn't bad in and of itself - I mean it wasn't too long ago that I couldn't wait to be older. It just means that the days are long, but yes, new and very weary mom, the years are indeed short.

It means that my baby girl is going to be exposed to new things. Things outside of my control and outside of Jesus. This has happened before, of course, but this is going to be a pretty permanent change.

But what it really means - where the deep down emotion was coming from - is this feeling that it's time for me to get with the program.

School activities, buying school supplies, registering for programs and signing up for sports... this is a huge neon flashing sign that says : "SUMMER IS OVER, AND ONWARD YOU GO..." I guess it would be a good time to get back in the swing of things here, right?

On the blog. In my shop. In life.

This summer the Lord enabled me to hit the pause button... to stop and rest. To lean into Him and ask Him to mold my dreams. This was for the best. I learned so much about God the Father, about myself and about all that He wants for me. (Not all He has planned for me, but what He wants for me - to trust Him fully, to live in a peaceful state of mind and to love my family before all other earthly things).

With school starting, summer ending and new dreams brewing, I know it's time to move forward from this place of rest into a space of growth and doing.

But how do I do that? What is the secret formula for trusting Him but also doing the work? Where in the Bible does it tell me how much I am expected to make stuff happen and how much I am to expect God to direct the stuff happening?

Does anyone else struggle with that?

I am reminded, when I wrestle with all of this in my mind, of a phrase someone said at She Speaks in July. I can't force a door open that He doesn't want to open for me. God is certainly a God of details, we see that with the genealogy in the Bible, with creation and with the physical human traits that we carry. But are there details that He just simply leaves up to us?

I tend to get stuck, wanting to strike the perfect balance of planning a way but letting Him direct my steps. As I reflect on this, I am overcome with the greatness that is His grace, reminded that He uses all for His good - even the stuff that may have been stepping out on my own, without asking God first.

As I dream and make plans to move forward, grow and expand, I want to ask for the Lord to expand my territory. To begin taking the land that He has promised to me. That He would stay with me every step of the way and that He would whisper gently in my ear when I step - even slightly - off of the path He has for me to take.

I have decided to cling to a verse that a sweet friend prayed over me last year. When I feel overwhelmed with the journey that may (or may not) be ahead, when I question whether or not His plans for me are indeed good, when I compare myself to what everyone else seems to be doing better and bigger and stronger than me, may I remember that "The Lord is my chosen portion and my cup; you hold my lot^. The lines have fallen for me in pleasant places; indeed, I have a beautiful inheritance."(Psalm 16:5-6)

The lines have fallen for us in pleasant places, my friends. We aren't meant to do it all, but we are meant to do our own assignments with Him.  May we all be reminded of this today. It doesn't really matter to Him if we took baby steps, gigantic steps or stood still in our assignments today. He is after our hearts and when our hearts are after Him, He takes care of the steps. Even the still ones. 

Lessons from the Wilderness :: The Final Chapter

Welcome back to my wilderness story. If you are just joining us, you can catch part one here, and part two here. If you're in the middle of the valley - in the wilderness - I pray that the story He is building in me gives you hope for today!

Let's do a quick recap - we've discussed what a wilderness season might look like in your life. We've seen how the Isrealites (like myself) tend to turn back to Egypt while walking through the dry seasons. Today we are going to end with the HOPE that comes from deciding to stop turning around when it gets hard, but keep going!

Today we are going to pick up in Isaiah right after God tells the people He will break them like a potter's jar where not one shard will be recognizable. (Isaiah 30:12-14)

"For thus the Lord God, the Holy One of Israel, has said: 
In repentance and rest you will be saved,
In quietness and trust is your strength.”
But you were not willing,
And you said, “No, for we will flee on horses,”
Therefore you shall flee!" (Isaiah 30:15, 16)

Did you catch that???? Repentance and rest will be our saving grace. Our strength will come from quietness and trusting in Him. I had not been willing! So often I am not willing, y'all.

This has me thinking, why is rest and quiet so hard? Perhaps it's because I idolize busy. People who are busy seem to be important or at least have a lot to offer. I tend to think I need to say yes to everything because that might make me a “good Christian”, anybody there with me? I don’t trust Him to choose the best for us, so I choose all of the good things, hoping one might be the best thing. But then when the BEST thing finally comes along, I don’t have time - or I can’t even hear the call because my mind is cluttered and chaotic.

Verse 18.

“Therefore the Lord longs to be gracious to you, and therefore He waits on high to have compassion on you. For the Lord is a God of justice; How blessed are all those who long for Him. O people in Zion, inhabitant in Jerusalem, you will weep no longer. He will surely be gracious to you at the sound o four cry; when he hears it, He will answer you. Although the Lord has given you bread of privation and water of oppression, He, our Teacher will no longer hide Himself, but your eyes will behold your Teacher. Your ears will hear a word behind you, ‘This is the way, walk in it’ whenever you turn to the right or to the left. And you will defile your graven images overlaid with silver and your molten images plated with gold. You will scatter them as an impure things and say to them, “Be gone!”

Reading this passage is like taking a deep exhale, right? If you find yourself in this wilderness season of life, looking back toward Egypt - please feel this message of hope today.

This has become my promised land, y’all. I want so badly to hear a voice behind me saying, “this is the way, walk in it.” This is my ultimate goal.This is purpose.

But what is required from me to accomplish that? Repentance. Rest. Quietness & Trust.

God wants my compassion, my obedience, my trust… not just my sacrifice. He wants my heart, not my check in the box. He desires me to, like Mary, choose the better part - Him.

He doesn’t need our service. He simply wants us.

The wilderness is our opportunity - welcomed or not - to be still before Him. It’s our chance to press into Him, to depend on Him ALONE. It is the place He brings us to so we have no other choice. Think about all of the miracles that the Israelites saw because of the wilderness:

The parting of the Red Sea which included walking on DRY LAND and the drowning of all of Pharoah’s chariots, horses and men.

Being led by a pillar of fire and a cloud.

Bread raining from heaven. (Can we stop right there and talk about this? Eventually they begin complaining about the bread and begging for quail. Who, in their right mind, would ever complain about eating bread every single day???? I WISH I could eat bread that rained from heaven every day, y’all. They’re crazy!!!)

Sweet water from a rock.

The supernatural writing of the ten commandments.

And that's just a few.

Miracles, y’all. Because of the wilderness, not just in spite of the wilderness.

Did you know that most scholars suggest that the journey from Egypt to Canaan was 30 days - at most?!

Exodus 13: 17 says “Now when Pharaoh had led the people go, God did not lead them by the way of the land of the Philistines, even though it was near; for God said, ‘The people might change their minds when they see war and return to Egypt.’ Hence God led the people around by the way of the wilderness to the Red Sea”. (Emphasis mine).

God saw that they might change their minds when they see war! So he took them through the wilderness to protect them both mentally and physically. His desire wasn't to slow them down, but to build up their faith, preparing them for the war that was definitely coming, but in His timing which, unfortunately, is often not ours. 

In other words, He taught them things in the wilderness that He wouldn’t have been able to if they had simply gone from point A to point B. If we went straight from mountaintop to mountaintop there wouldn’t be much time for reflection, gratitude or refinement. But for some reason, I still find myself fighting the valley between instead of embracing it. Do you?

I have found that it takes a lot of discipline to be still and yield to the unwanted seasons of life. It takes a lot of faith to hang on and believe that God will do what He says He will. We are not alone in that struggle. Even after building up the Israelites' faith in the wilderness, only 2 out of 12 leaders ended up believing that God would do what He said that He would. Only two, y’all.

We have to remember that the wilderness wasn't the consequence. WANDERING in the wilderness was the consequence. The wilderness was the way taken out of protection, provision and preparation - all in Gods sovereignty.

We fight the wilderness like it is somewhere we shouldn't be. But God takes us that way to show us miracles that we otherwise wouldn't see. To still our hearts and provide for us the BEST parts of Himself. To prepare us to trust Him when we get to the banks of the Jordan when we can't see any way through, around or across.

The Israelites could have avoided 40 YEARS wandering around if they would have just trusted God to come through on His promises. If they would have simply remembered all that he had done for them and promised to do for them, they might have avoided it all. They gave up forty years in a land of milk and honey because they put God in a box and said that this fight was too big for Him.

So what is up ahead for you? What do you need to believe Him for today? What thing seems impossible for Him - the thing that you wonder if He even remembers you are waiting on?

Turn back to that page between the Old Testament and the New Testament and grab hold of it tightly.

Do you feel forgotten? Do you feel lonely? Do you seek God but feel silence? Think about those 400 years of silence and what that must have felt like. How dark and deserted it must have been. Perhaps that is how you're feeling now. Let the weight of that sink in for just a moment.

Now turn the page to Matthew 1:1.

“Now here is the genealogy  of the Messiah, Jesus Christ.”

Not only did He show up, He gave them JESUS.

He always shows up.

He showed up for the Israelites time and time again. Even in the wilderness, even in their disobedience, even in their complaining. He showed up. Even after 400 years of silence, when they felt like they had been completely abandoned and forgotten. He showed up and He sent the Messiah! That was a wait worth having!

“For the Lord your God has blessed you in all that you have done; He has known your wanderings through this great wilderness. These forty years the Lord you God has been with you; you have not lacked a thing.” Deuteronomy 2:7 (emphasis mine)

We have not lacked one thing.

Even in the wilderness.

If you are in the wilderness with me today, let us all take time to look for the Manna that is raining from Heaven. We can decide to keep our focus on the promises, not just the Promised Land. Let's intentionally remember what He has done and is doing in the waiting.

It won’t be easy, but God never promises easy, does He? Or quick timing.

"Do not call to mind the former things,
Or ponder things of the past.
“Behold, I will do something new,
Now it will spring forth;
Will you not be aware of it?
I will even make a roadway in the wilderness,
Rivers in the desert. " (Isaiah 43:18,19)

Will you not BE AWARE OF IT?

I guarantee He’s showing up if you just look for His faithfulness. Trust Him to do it. To walk with you. To guide you. To be that sometimes still and small voice behind you saying THIS is the WAY.  

But we must be aware of it. 

What is your wilderness story? What is He doing for you in the deserted and dry places of your life? I pray that if you find yourself covered with the dust of the wilderness journey, that you'll find hope in His words today. Praying that we each walk well... baby step by baby step today. Thank you for allowing me to share with you!