I woke up feeling discouraged. Weeks of physical therapy were helping me get my mobility back when bam, I re-injured my knee and pulled my sacroiliac joint out of line. Two weeks after starting over in my therapy and hours of traveling back and forth and doing exercises, I was still painfully limping around. I woke up thinking, “I’m going quit this.” That’s when the Lord reminded me of Proverbs 24:10.

“If you are slack in the day of distress, your strength is limited” (NASB). (Read More)

Have you ever felt nibbled to death by a school of guppies? After a quiet Christmas break, all that had been put aside for the holidays swarmed upon me. Thankfully, this has not been a shark attack, just many diverse areas vying for my attention.

Pulled in a dozen different directions at once, I’ve struggled to focus on what I was doing. Two thoughts have helped me navigate through the discordance. First, “I only have to do today what my heavenly Father wants me to do today.” That thought has been my north star. Each day I ask the Lord, what needs to be done today? Usually one or two things crystallize in my mind. I think through my list and smile. Those are exactly the things for this day. (Read More)

The organizer of our prayer group read from A. W. Tozer’s list of self-sins that can hinder prayer. When she named “self-sufficiency” I straightened. “Oh no.” I thought, “Has my desire to have “no needs” meant I don’t want to have to rely on God?”

I had to confess that I want to be self-sufficient. I don’t like to have needs. I like to feel strong and in control. I equate security with possessing the material and immaterial resources to seize every opportunity and conquer any problem.

Even in everyday life, I like being able to handle issues. When I’m dependent on others I must wait on their time table. In short, I like being self-sufficient.

As I thought about this my eyes landed on “My grace is sufficient for you.” (Read More)

I twisted my knee a couple of weeks before Christmas. Our house is built into a hill and goes up and down—that means steps and lots of them. I had shopping, cooking, and gift wrapping to do. Painfully hobbling around on one leg during the holidays seemed like a stroke of bad luck—but was it? Ephesians 1:11 reminded me that God “works all things after the counsel of His will.”

How could being laid up during the holidays be God’s will? Romans 12:2 says that His will is good, acceptable, and perfect. James 1:17 says God is the giver of good gifts. This did not feel good or acceptable to me—or probably my family either—since they had to pitch in and cover for me. (Read More)

Did you know that you are called to be a highlighter? You know those bright colored markers that highlight great things worth knowing and remembering? Matthew 5:16 says, “Let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven” (NIV). You and I are called to highlight or spotlight God through what we do.

As I’ve thought through what I do—instead of bemoaning what I can’t do—I realized I can be a highlighter. Although I admire people who package their ideas in sidesplitting humor or brilliant freshness, that’s not my strength. However, my life and ministry can highlight what already exists—God and His timeless truth. (Read More)