How a Duck Changed What I Saw
Grace might be hidden in disappointment. Love might be tucked beside loss. Goodness might be embedded in trials.
This Resurrected Life
Staring at Death’s Face She gazed down the way, searching for his familiar form. Surely he’ll be here, she whispered, willing her words to make it so. “Come quickly,” she’d said. “Your friend is sick.” Two days. It’d been two days since she sent word. Where was he? Didn’t he care? Her pace quickened as…
What “The Breakfast Club” and Redbud Retreat Taught Me about Belonging
With each conversation over the following two days —at meals, before breakout sessions, even standing in hallways—I bore witness to God’s abundant grace as each woman shared her good story and spoke hope others needed to hear.
One Unsinkable Moment
I love musicals. As a young single mom, I spent many rainy afternoons snuggled close with my oldest daughter as we watched “singing and dancing” movies like “Newsies,” “Meet Me in St. Louis,” and ”The Unsinkable Molly Brown.” Many films simply stirred joy, but “The Unsinkable Molly Brown” carried all my favorite story ingredients: an underdog, an unlikely…
Wholeness Birthed From a Broken Heart
There are few times in our lives when we can look back and declare, “At that moment, right there, I was broken, and it changed everything.” I remember such a moment, one that sent me on a journey I continue to navigate seventeen years later, one filled with death and sorrow, pain and loss, joy…
In Holy Awe of a Beating Heart
I never saw a heartbeat inside a chest before, until one day, I did. This wasn’t something I set out to do; I’m not a surgeon nor do I work in the medical field. In fact, unless there’s a problem, I don’t pay much attention to the beat of my own heart. I trust in…
A Faith-stretching, Anxiety-producing Year of … Gratitude?
Sucker-punched. I sat in bed, staring at the cell phone still in my hand, my mind adjusting to what my husband had said. The words I spoke out loud continued to spin in my mind as I tried to make sense of it all. What just happened? I couldn’t believe it. Reality slammed into me…
The Hard Work of Healing from Divorce
There were two fears I carried early in life, two circumstances I begged God to never allow happen: losing a child and divorce. I’m not quite sure why those two particular issues scared me as they did—maybe because I’ve seen the devastation loss like that creates in life, the aftermath of the destruction, and the…
Hope, Goodness, and Thankfulness
I woke to a beautiful scene outside my window—a quintessential New England winter day complete with snow-covered trees and a gentle hush of peace. I lay there a moment, welcoming the peace as it seeped into my weary bones. Grabbing the warmest sweatshirt I could find, I stepped around furniture not yet nestled in its…
He Calls Me Mine
What’s in a name? A name helps us be known by others, to connect. When I named my two girls, I chose names that spoke value and caught a glimpse into their character and who they might become. My parents set the stage for choosing names. They chose mine because of a movie: True Grit….
The Sorrow & Silence of Saturday
I stood in the middle of the store and felt a deep sense of satisfaction: that’s the one. That’s her Easter dress. Three generations of girls gathered that day at the American Girl® Place to celebrate a milestone birthday for my mom. It was a Saturday full of storytelling and laughter as we shared a…