A Prayer for Filling

Lord Jesus, I’m desperate. Desperate for strength. Desperate for renewal. Desperate for fresh breath. Desperate for change. I am worn and weary. My strength fails me. My heart, my body…they fail me. I need YOU. I need a fresh dose of your power, of your Spirit. I need a fresh filling of your strength, of […]

It Takes Two and Other Myths About Adultery and Divorce

It takes two… I’m sure you’ve heard the phrase as it applies to many different things in this life. I spent the majority of my life believing that divorce took two, that if a divorce occurred it was because both people were responsible for the failure. I now know just how wrong that belief is. […]

It’s Not About You (Revisited)

I’ll never forget the conversation I had with my then husband about the woman he was having an affair with. “It’s just exhilarating that someone like that would be interested in me,” he said. Adultery hits at the core of your being. Every ounce of self-confidence and self-respect you carry is destroyed. You look in […]

The Ultimate Appraisal

Nine years ago when I was going through my divorce, my parents were living two hours away taking care of my then 98-year-old grandfather. They decided to sell their home, move closer to me so they could help me with the kids, and bring my sweet grandpa with them. My grandmother had died a few […]

Where’s Your Security?

“Get your security from me,” God whispered to my heart. It might have been a whisper, but His voice was louder with each passing day. I was in the midst of some of the most painful days of my life. My husband had been caught in an affair, and despite my attempts to reconcile, I […]

When Bitterness Consumes You

Monday, I drove out of state for work. A quick down-and-back trip, but it provided ample time to think and pray and listen to sermons. It was a welcome change of pace. Before I left, I was faced with an unexpected situation that brought a flood of memories to the front of my mind, reminding […]

When You Don’t Get a Hollywood Ending: Three Lessons from the Movie I Can Only Imagine

I’ll never forget the first time I heard I Can Only Imagine. Our church’s youth group had just returned from a Texas youth event where a new band had sung their debut song. It so impacted our youth and workers that they came back and played the song for us. Now, the story behind the […]

A Legacy of Billy Graham

The last two weeks have been filled with the news of Billy Graham’s death…or more appropriately, his grand entrance into eternity with his Savior. When I first learned of his death, I was preparing to attend the funeral of a college friend of mine, a man who left this life way too soon but most […]

When We Fail at Purity

God’s will is for you to be holy, so stay away from all sexual sin. Then each of you will control his own body and live in holiness and honor— not in lustful passion like the pagans who do not know God and his ways…God has called us to live holy lives, not impure lives. […]

The School of Contentment

Not that I was ever in need, for I have learned how to be content with whatever I have. I know how to live on almost nothing or with everything. I have learned the secret of living in every situation, whether it is with a full stomach or empty, with plenty or little. For I […]