The righteous man walks in his integrity; his children are blessed after him. (Prov 20:7 NKJV)
When I was a teenager, my dad and I didn’t always get along. Our disagreements were the typical father/teenage daughter variety. But as I’ve gotten older, I’ve learned something—we’re more alike than we are different. Not only do we look alike, but we think alike and sometimes even act alike. Continue reading “A Father’s Love”
Not only so, but we also glory in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope (Rom 5:3-4).
Last September, my mom fell and broke her kneecap. With the subsequent surgery and recovery, she was off work for about six months. What seemed like a tragedy had a silver lining: I stayed with my parents during those months, and I spent more time with them than I normally would have. And even though I wish my mom hadn’t gotten hurt, I wouldn’t trade the time with her for anything, especially since the lockdown has kept us apart for the last couple of months. Continue reading “My Mother’s Strength”
“Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! In his great mercy he has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead” (1 Pt 1:3).
With so much going on in the world around us right now, it’s easy to focus on the coronavirus (COVID-19) and the problems it’s causing. When I’m not careful about the media I consume, I get lost in the dire news predictions. My attention moves from God and what I know is true about him to fear and uncertainty.
Even though I want to focus on God, I let the chaos around me take my attention. In fact, I realized I had almost forgotten about Easter when I opened my YouVersion Bible app and saw the Easter Bible study plans there. Continue reading “Celebrating Easter During a Crisis”
“The angel said to the women, “Do not be afraid, for I know that you are looking for Jesus, who was crucified. He is not here; he has risen…” (Matthew 28:5)
Easter, unlike Thanksgiving or Christmas, is not celebrated on a single day. Instead, the Easter season begins with Lent, a 40-day period of fasting, prayer, and reflection that leads to Easter Sunday. Continue reading “Lent: A Season of Sacrifice”
“Turn to me and be gracious to me, for I am lonely and afflicted.” (Ps 25:16)
Christmas may be the most wonderful time of the year for many, but it’s not that way for everyone. As much as I love Christmas, and I really do, there have been years I just wanted to skip the holiday. The years with tremendous changes such as my divorce, the death of my grandma, and the move of my brother and his wife were times I didn’t feel as festive. Continue reading “When Christmas Isn’t So Wonderful”