-
How Long, O Lord?
This is a guest post from a close friend of mine, Denae Everson. Denae is a stay-at-home-mom of two who loves encouraging other women to find their hope in the gospel. When she finds free time, she enjoys writing about motherhood, cutting and styling hair, and trying to get raspberries to grow in her backyard. *** I know you’ve been there. Maybe you’re there now. If you haven’t been there, you’ll probably be at some point, so just tuck this away until then. Not long ago, I was there, stuck in the hardest, darkest season of my 31 years on this earth. I had a two-year-old boy and a very,…
-
The Sacrifice of Time
This is a guest post from my sister, Kelsey. Kelsey has her Master’s Degree in Social Work and mentors new social workers while managing cases. She recently decided to go back to school to learn ASL so she can better assist her clients. In her free time, Kelsey likes to read, write, exercise outdoors, and study the Bible. *** When I think of a sacrifice, I picture Moses sacrificing animals to God. I certainly do not think of time. Perhaps the sacrifice of time is one of the greatest sacrifices a human will ever be asked to make. Our Time Belongs to God God is the “Alpha and the Omega,…
-
The Drudgery of Summer
In theory, the phrase “no schedule” sounds delightful to me. I can wake up every morning, calculate how the children feel about plans for the day, and then go out to explore the sunny, pale-blue-sky world in whatever way seems best. I can do the smelly, stacked-up dishes when I want to. I don’t need to concern myself with tables of lesson plans or how I’m going to get the lunches made and packed in time. I can sit in the shady quiet of the back yard feeding the chickens clovers and listening to the wrens buzz in their nest box. So, so delightful. Or so very boring! Please, please…
-
Ideas and Commands
Maybe every parent struggles with this concept, or maybe just me, but when I reprimand my children I generally reprimand them with abstract ideas instead of a concrete commands. Here’s a quick example: Samuel and Ruthie were playing with bubbles out on the deck at the cabin. I encouraged Samuel to share the bubble wand with Ruthie. To a five-year-old boy, this probably seemed more like an abstract idea than a concrete command. I bet he wondered something like, “Why do I have to share? And how do I share with someone who doesn’t even know how to use a bubble wand? Does Mom even know what she’s talking about?!”…
-
Weight Loss Round Three
Introduction The word “gospel” means good news. As Christians, the good news we share with others is that Jesus came to redeem us from our sins. When we trust in him, we do our best to please him in every area of our lives for his glory and our good. As I matured as a Christian woman, I noticed areas of my life in which I didn’t apply the gospel, which included diet, exercise, and just generally how I took care of myself. Subconsciously, I think I labeled these as moral “gray areas” because the Bible doesn’t prescribe a particular diet, exercise, or health care regiment. While that may be…