When You Feel Defeated
Do you ever feel like you've lost before you've even begun? Sometimes we feel defeated before the battle has even begun because the challenge is too great; the heartache is too unbearable; and the personal cost is too much. Courage feels thin. Hearts quake and knees...
Do You Need to Hear Good News?
Trust Building Verses: Overcome Anxiety by Hearing the Word of God When I hear the news, I've noticed my mind runs in anxious circles over what's happening in our world. But God pulls me into a hard stop and says, "Listen." So, I have been and this what...
Trusting in the Name of the Lord
The Lord is our hiding place and he is our strength in times of trouble. But how do we move from struggle to rest? How do we move from anxiety to peace? How does our trust grow when we can't seem to see God in our circumstances? I came across Psalm 9:9-10 and knew I...
A Prayer for Praise
Sometimes our Christian growth gets marked by starts and stops; wet seasons and dry seasons; valleys and deserts; gentle rains and torrential down pours. Some years we grow by leaps and bounds and other years we take a couple or three steps backward. But God is...
How to Be Strong When You Feel Weak
Falling Up? I fell up the stairs the other day (again). I promise I've walked those stairs numerous times and haven't fallen down them (yet). But going up them? That's another story. Falling forward is something I'm pretty familiar with. My toe hits the step...
The Hidden Strength of Stillness
Have you ever felt that your weakness holds you back? Maybe you feel like your soul limps through life and you experience the same difficulty over and over again and that somehow you failed because you can't quite seem to move past it. I shared a post on...
The Lord is My Portion, My Hope, and Yours
The Lord is enough and our portion, but sometimes the suffering in life takes our eyes off of this truth. Listen in on one of my letters of grace to readers who subscribe to Welcome Grace. I'd love to send you these Grace Notes to you too! Sign up using the banner at...
The Paradox of Praise in Lament
The Paradox of Praise Praise is the final piece in biblical lament. It's the paradoxical nature of life with Christ. We worship in spirit and truth. God is both merciful and just. We lay down our life and live as living sacrifices. Lament is both pain and...
Asking for Help and the Power of Lament
Asking for help doesn't come without risk, and voicing questions holds opportunities for ridicule. But sometimes the risk is worth the ride and the questions unfold into glorious answers. However, before I give voice to my question, I jump through mental hoops like...
When Emotions and Lament Create Paths to Trust
Emotions scare me because they're so powerful, yet render me powerless. The power of them takes me by surprise, like touching a hot pan. I yank back in defensiveness, shielding my wound. Emotions surrounding the pain of shattered friendships, lousy news, and broken...
The Song of Lament and The Way to Trust His Heart
Lament is the language that leads us through our sorrow and into praise. Trouble comes to us. We know disappointment and frustration; sorrow and pain. Trusting the Lord and taking hold of courage in the midst of problems grows our faith when we use the language of...
Cry for Victory and Find Your Way Home
The cry can be one of victory or loss. It arouses a crowd in support of their favorite team. The battle cry sends warriors racing into battle, and the cry of a son lost rips from his mother's heart. The cry begins and ends so many of our life experiences. “The...