Wednesday, December 30, 2020
New Beginnings
Thursday, December 24, 2020
Love Came Down
Tuesday, December 15, 2020
The Light
Tuesday, December 8, 2020
Taking Time
Tuesday, December 1, 2020
The Weight Of Years
Thursday, November 26, 2020
Thankful Thursday #4
Wednesday, November 18, 2020
Thankful Thursday #3
Thursday, November 12, 2020
Thankful Thursday #2
Friday, November 6, 2020
Thankful Thursday #1
Tuesday, October 27, 2020
My Story
Tuesday, October 20, 2020
The Desert
Tuesday, October 13, 2020
Is This What I Look Like?
Tuesday, October 6, 2020
Resurrection
Tuesday, September 29, 2020
A Dormant Season
Tuesday, September 22, 2020
Dogs At My Heels
Friday, September 18, 2020
His Strength
Tuesday, September 8, 2020
When My Plans Get Wreaked
Thursday, September 3, 2020
My Running List
Wednesday, August 26, 2020
29 Random Facts About Me
Saturday, August 22, 2020
Rhythms, Routines, and Normal Life
Friday, August 14, 2020
Keep Going
I know this season has lasted longer than any of us wanted.
This season of shutdowns, unknowns, Coronavirus, fears, and deferred plans.
In this season, God hasn't been still. We have seen Him working. He is actively pursuing us and drawing us closer to Himself. In the midst of all the chaos, He has been with us. He has been our strength and our refuge.
This season has not been easy, but it has taught us much. And it's not over yet. It's easy right now to grow tired and quit. But you don't have to.
Let us keep pressing ahead. Let us not grow weary. Let us keep running the race that God has laid out for us. Let us keep doing what we know is right.
With Christ by our side empowering us every step of the way, we can do this. In Him and with Him.
Know that I pray that today you would be encouraged to run the race well and love those around you.
Wednesday, August 5, 2020
I Was Afraid
Monday, July 20, 2020
She Dances Free
Tuesday, July 14, 2020
The Weak One
Tuesday, July 7, 2020
In Your Eyes
Wednesday, July 1, 2020
A Faith That Remains
Tuesday, June 23, 2020
I Hope I Keep Getting Headaches
Tuesday, June 16, 2020
A Hope Surrendered
Wednesday, June 10, 2020
The Vast God
Tuesday, June 9, 2020
16 Years
Wednesday, June 3, 2020
Where I'm At
Sometimes you have to stop making excuses.
Sometimes you have to simply own up to the facts.
Sometimes you need to own where you are.
Why?
So that you can get to where you need to be.
So you can move past what is slowing you down.
So that you can remember how you got here.
So that you can be reminded whos you are.
You are in Christ.
You are chosen.
You are redeemed.
You have purpose.
You have so many reasons to walk forward.
If today you are struggling with where you are.
If today you want to change.
If today you can't see a way from where you are to where you want to be, there is hope.
There is hope for a better tomorrow.
There is a better place.
There is a life beyond words waiting to be unwrapped.
Come to God.
Start with where you are.
Let Him unfold the path to where you want to be.
Saturday, May 30, 2020
My Pandemic Story
Wednesday, May 27, 2020
The Power To Overcome
Lately I have been fighting. It's been a silent war raging in my mind. It's the battle of the past. Particularly memories from 2017. I see a scene that I had a part in play out. I hear a part of a conversation. I am back there in the phone conversation or reading the text. I'm replaying conversations that I can't take back.
I don't know why in the last few weeks these playbacks have become more frequent. I know that this time of year three years ago I was in the thick of a lot of things that make me cringe today. What I have learned from the past is that to let these thoughts run wild is a dangerous thing. Once they start invading they take over and eat the joy of the what God is doing today. They come in and beat me down for the things I can't take back.
In these times I have a choice. That in of itself is an evidence that The Spirit is at work. Those who do not have The Spirit of God living in them don't have a choice at all. They are enslaved to whatever passion or sin comes their way. They think they are free, but they cannot say no to this destructive power. I digress.
I have a choice. I can either give my mind over to these memories. Get entangled in them, dragged down, and beat down by them. Or I can choice to give my mind over to God. I can choose to pray and seek His help.
In these moments its critical to call out to the One who is stronger than my memories. The One who is stronger than my past. The One who is greater than my fears. The One who conquered them with His blood. The One who rose victorious over every power. The One who is exalted and holy. The One who is with me even as I fight these thoughts.
In these moments I must look to His strength to fight this battle. In these moments I must remember what He has done. He shed His own blood for those moments. And having canceled the written code that stood against me He made a public spectacle of them. Triumphing over them by the cross. Therefore God has highly exalted Christ and given Him the name that is above every name. That at the name of Jesus every knee will bow in heaven and on earth and under the earth. And every tongue will confess that Jesus Christ is Lord to the glory and praise of God the Father.
This is the God I serve. Why in these moments of struggle would I try to muscle through it on my own? Oh I have those moments too, but they never bring victory. Left to myself I fail every single time.
But praise be to God who raises the dead I don't have to live there. I can, by The Holy Spirit living inside me, overcome. I can look to Christ and bring these thoughts captive. I can remember that God remembers them no more. I remember that they are stained red with the blood of my Savior. I can remember that the power to overcome comes from the Spirit inside me. This is is how I can fight the memories. This is how I can overcome. Not by my power, but by The Spirit within me.
Wednesday, May 20, 2020
The Things I Took For Granted
There are a lot of things that I took for granted before quarantine. I want to share the list with you and challenge you to write your own list. These things that aren't necessary for life, but I enjoy them.
Monday, May 18, 2020
When My Plans Change
Monday, May 11, 2020
For Those Who Have Wondered
Wednesday, May 6, 2020
Ambiguity
Sunday, April 26, 2020
Joy
Saturday, April 25, 2020
Don't Give Up During Quarantine
Wednesday, April 22, 2020
To What Do You Run?
Saturday, April 18, 2020
2 Years Of Loved Before Time
Sunday, April 12, 2020
He Is Risen!
I never get tired of saying this. Jesus is Alive! Death, the devil, and all of hell couldn't hold Him. Jesus conquered the grave and rose again victorious. He is Lord over all creation. He reigns over death and life. He is Ruler over all.
This is our King. This is our God. This is Christ the Risen Lord.
Let us celebrate that Jesus rose from the dead. Tell this amazing news wherever you go. Nothing in the world or hell could hold Him captive. He is triumphant over death and sin. He is alive! Amen!
Saturday, April 11, 2020
The Night Before
There's something that seems so cold and sad about a grave. I've stood beside the graves of several people that I loved and cried. They have gone into another world free from pain and heartache. Where they once held a place in my heart, there's a void. It hurts.
From the vantage point of over 2000 years its easy to read about the death and burial of Jesus and not feel the weight of Saturday and feel the darkness of the night. Back then they didn't have the end of the story, they were living it. They were experiencing it in real time.
Stop for a moment and think about this: you have just seen a close friend die a bloody merciless death on a cross. His presence is gone. No more laughter or asking questions. No more meals together or enjoyable talks on dusty roads. Nothing. Just a void. You grieve at how you weren't there for Him when He needed you most and wonder if things would have been different. The finality of death fills you with pain. Tears of shame and loss come easy. You wonder if the sun will ever shine again.
What part of your story feels like its been dead and in the grave? What place in your life feels like a void where there was once life and happiness? I have them and you do too.
Can I tell you something? It's not over yet. As black as the night was for Jesus, death wasn't the end of His story. Whatever area in your life feels dead, it's not over yet. It's only the night before the best part of your story takes place.
Is it hard to believe that when all you can see is cold blackness? Yes, but God is not through with your story. He still has more to write. Believe in His power. Wait on the Lord. Wait for the best part of the story. It's coming.
Friday, April 10, 2020
Our Passover
Tonight we celebrate the time when the Israelite's put blood on the doorposts and God passed over them. We also celebrate that Christ has come and covered us in His blood. This is a wonderful celebration and a time for us to thank God for His provision in the Son.
Friends Christ died the death that we should have died. He endured trials and interrogation like we will never know. He submitted to the worst death known to man. He did all of this to cover us in His blood. He went to the cross to redeem rebellious sinners to Himself and transform us into loving sons and daughters.
Today let us give thanks for His sacrifice that covers us in life giving blood. Let us remember His sacrifice and rejoice in what it has brought about in our lives. Let us remember the cost and praise the God who was willing to pay it.
We are free. We are redeemed. We are know and loved. We are covered. This is because of Christ. All praise, glory, and honor be to the King who conquered the cross. May all that I am praise and glorified the One who has covered me with His blood and redeemed me.
Thursday, April 9, 2020
A New World
New Beginnings
Source I enjoy this time of year. I have a few things that I always try to work into the last week of the year. Things like deep...
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source I went to clean up the latest mess and try to contain my frustration. The day was not going well. I mentally added this l...
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When I was 10 my sister Rebekkah went into the hospital with a collapsed lung and a strep infection that threatened every organ in her body....
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Source In the hustle and bustle of the holiday season, it's easy to get so busy that we miss the the wonder. But today I ch...