What can we do in this time of isolation? Of course we should still strive to do life together, even if that means through Zoom, FaceTime, texting, phone calls, and letters. None of us can make it through this alone! But I think there is more we can do. This quarantine is giving us time to do two things that will greatly strengthen our communities.
Read MoreAre people looking beyond the family unit for meaning and stability? Let us hope so! But let it not be friendship they look to. Let it be Jesus.
Read MoreI found out I was pregnant again. At this point, those two lines were more ominous than hopeful. Pregnancy had brought mostly disappointment. But, it was another chance at starting a family, nonetheless. I survived the first week. The second. The third. And suddenly something dangerous began to happen. I began to hope.
Read MoreHow can we work to create an environment where deep and meaningful friendships can form? This is exactly the question I was hoping to address at a women's event at my church recently. In this post you can listen to my talk on How to Cultivate Community.
Read MoreIs God important enough to us that we'll do whatever it takes to hear Him? In 1 Kings 19, God revealed Himself to Elijah not in an earthquake or fire but in a "low whisper" (v. 12). How can we hear this gentle whisper of God unless we quiet the noise of our lives? To have a listening prayer life, we need to learn to wait in silence on God.
Read MoreMiscarriage is the membership card to a club you never asked to be in; a union of women sporting badges of infertility, stillbirth, miscarriage, and even abortion. Women who share your emotions, questions, crisis of faith, and isolation, women whose desire to be a parent has been abruptly interrupted by suffering. This post is an effort to encourage those who are grieving and to help friends and family members trying to help.
Read MoreBeing left out will always be a litmus test for pride. As soon as you realize you didn’t get the invite, you aren’t in the inner circle, or you are on the outside, one of two responses happen. The first is the most common: hurt, disappointment, and/or anger. Under those surface feelings are deep roots of entitlement (a.k.a. pride). A feeling that you deserve to be included or that you have merited inclusion. Or that you are owed the opportunity to be included, assuming that it's the fair thing to do. But our God isn't fair, mercifully so (read more about that here). We live under grace and that changes the game.
To boil it down, being included is about being honored. Like the kids picked first for the kickball team, being chosen for any group is position of honor. No one wants to be last on the team, or worst of all, not picked at all. We want the places of honor.
Read MoreWhat inner circle do you want to be in? Who are those "important people" in your life? These are the people who you keep your eye out for. Those you search for reasons to strike up a conversation with. The ones you don't want to miss when you walk through the halls or the lobby after church.
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