Tag: suffering
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Thankful for what isn’t
Be thankful in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you who belong to Christ Jesus. 1 Thessalonians 5:18, NLT In 1990, country music artist Garth Brooks released a song titled “Unanswered Prayers.” In it, as with most country hits, he reflected on an old flame he once prayed to God would be his, […]
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Worn out from War?
I’m tiredI’m wornMy heart is heavyFrom the work it takes to keep on breathing. “Worn,” Tenth Avenue North Spiritual warfare. Let’s talk about it. Because…let’s be honest. When you hear about it, you may think of people being overtaken by demons, questioning their faith, or running from God. Right? Maybe? It can be these things. […]
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Promises of God: A Reason
Every day of my life was recorded in your book. Every moment was laid out before a single day had passed. Psalm 139:16, NLT “Everything happens for a reason.” A phrase I have had a problem with a time. Two. Three hundred. And some. For me, at times…it seemed like a pat answer usually given […]
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Promises of God: Healing
He will wipe every tear from their eyes, and there will be no more death or sorrow or crying or pain. All these things are gone forever. Revelation 21:4, NLT Today’s devotional is not part of the monthly promises. It’s prompted from my hiatus in my effort to write. My inability to do much at […]
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Promises of God: A Hopeful Future
“For I know the plans I have for you,” says the Lord. “They are plans for good and not for disaster, to give you a future and a hope.” Jeremiah 29:11 I have a bit of a bone to pick with today’s verse. When I hear it spoken at weddings, baby showers, or plastered on graduation […]
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It is what it is
The phrase in the picture above. It’s one of my favorites. Coined by my bestie and I to remind ourselves to not worry over things we can’t control. It has carried us through tough things. Even trivial nuisances. I even have a bracelet to commemorate our adoption of the phrase. However, I heard in a […]
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Giving me a “right” hand
We had put it off for a while. The dentist. The youngest needed a mouth full of work, and with anxiety and sensory needs that kept him from even liking to have his teeth cleaned…we had put it off for months. But we had prepared him for this day. Explained what would occur, how he […]
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The Messy Middle
There is a place I dread visiting these days. For anyone navigating this stage of parenting, you must know this place. It is hidden behind a door in our home. I know who is there. Problem is…I never know what is there. Meaning, I never know what mess I will find. Are those clothes on […]
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How much more?
How much more God? How much more do you want me to take? As I struggle daily with actually carrying out what He has asked me to do, I wrestle frequently with wanting desperately to just give up. Asking Him to just send someone else, because surely I must not be it. As I sit […]
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He is protecting me
“But who is protecting us?” That was the question I asked. After I had once again felt victim to someone’s cruel behavior. A kid, in fact. Discouraged once again that I had spent a number of years (and countless tears) devoting my time, talent, and energy to being light and love in the midst of […]
Straight Up: Messy Truth 