I sat at a chic bistro table on a sunny back patio sipping iced coffee with three other women. I’d asked a friend if she wanted to start a Bible study with me, and she’d invited two of her friends, and here the four of us sat, trying to work out the ground rules of…
Hope in the Midst of Darkness
In him was life, and that life was the light of all mankind. The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it. John 1:4–5 NIV. Darkness pours from the TV screen, news of chaos, hate, and death. Hope is a tiny light. It may be dim but the faith it brings gives clear sight. Darkness seeps…
The Slow Grace of Time
Last night I snuggled cozily into an overstuffed chair with my seven-year-old son on my lap while watching a show about Australian crocodiles. This ordinary moment reminded me how far we’d come – he and I – and how as Ecclesiastes 3:11 says, God really does make everything beautiful in its time. In 2013 my…
After Graduation—What I Wish Someone had Told Me
Graduates of 2020 will never forget the unexpected circumstances that shifted their expectations for what finishing one chapter of life and beginning another would look like. For many, it became impossible to walk across the stage, shake hands, and receive the paper proof that they did indeed finish. Still, graduates around the world are stepping…
Change is not the End
C.S. Lewis once said, “There are far, far better things ahead than any we leave behind.” The first time I read this quote, I was in the middle of a huge life transition. Just recently I came across this quote again, and yes, I am standing on the brink of another major change. Doesn’t it…
You Mean I Can Say No?
I wish someone had told me this sooner in life. Somehow I grew up with the idea Christians, specifically Christian women, should always say Yes when a request is made of them. Obviously we’re supposed to say No to evil, but I didn’t understand it’s okay with God, and clearly communicated in His Word, that…
The Rhythm of the Days
What was the rhythm of my days, in the Time Before? I can hardly recall. There was an alarm clock, I know—the same 1992 Sony Dream Machine that still sits, silent now, on my bedside table—and I used to set it for 6:15. There was blundering into the shower and wrapping a dish towel around…
If Only
He has saved me from death, my eyes from tears, my feet from stumbling. And so I walk in the Lord’s presence as I live here on earth! Psalms 116:8-9 NLT. If only someone had told meIt was never my faultSomeone else was to blameFor this horrible assault If only someone had told meTo my attacker…
Motherhood: When Labor Pains are Endless
“What happened to me?!” A quick glance in the mirror takes me back just a bit. My hair is pulled back in a disarrayed mess, and dry snot is crusted on my sleeve. “Mommy!” my daughter yells. This shirt has GOT to go. “Mommmmy!” she shouts again. No one ever told me labor pains are endless…
Wrestling with Shoes
Step through my front door, and you’re greeted by shoes. Running shoes. Slides. Rubber boots. Loafers. There are shoes for playing soccer, shoes for playing baseball, shoes for church, and shoes for band performances. Oh, we can’t forget, shoes for stuffing your feet in when you have to run through the rain real quick to…
Anchored Voices 