It doesn’t take long to figure out I have a fear of flying. I looked it up and it's an actual thing, y'all. It's called aviophobia. In the last year, however, as I’ve been flying more frequently, I have gotten a bit better, but I still give myself a major pep talk prior to heading to the airport. A few years ago on a particularly disturbing flight, my husband leaned over and told me “If God wants to take you home, He’s going to do it whether or not you’re on an airplane.” Ouc

Let me ask you a question. Are you gullible? Maybe to ask it a bit better, would you consider yourself naive? I am by no means the smartest cookie in the jar, but I’ve learned over the years to approach certain things with a bit of skepticism over others. One of them being politics (obviously) and the other religion. These just so happen to be the very things we are not to discuss at the dinner table. I just have to say, look where that got us. I trust Jeff’s opinions politic

Last year my friends and mentors asked me to be on their podcast (that just celebrated their one year anniversary!) We had such fun visiting and talking about God, the Old Testament and what it’s like to be a political wife during this season. But one of the first question Chrissie asked me about was how I started getting up so early for my quiet time. I shared with them, as I share here so often, that my alarm goes off every weekday morning at 5:30. Now, do I snooze a few ti

For those of you like me, who limped across the finish line of 2018, welcome to your new year. Welcome to a fresh start, a blank slate, a year filled with new mercies, new possibilities and a mighty mission for you to walk in. I believe God has already gone before us, paving the way for wonderful and extraordinary things for us this year. He can take our pain and turn it into purpose. Turn our heartache into our hustle, our grief into growth. This is our year. This is our yea

I received a note last week on Instagram from a kind woman who heard me speak at her church last year. I taught on Building Authentic Relationships and I remember at her church in particular I was incredibly nervous to lay it all out there because I so often get it wrong. Am I fake? Am I genuine? Am I humble? Who in the world am I to be on a platform talking about anything, let alone friendship. But this was her message : “You were our best speaker and it was our best topic.”

Last week we traveled to my our favorite place : Watercolor, Florida. Part of what is called the Emerald Coast, it's known for it’s waters that change all sorts of colors turquoise to dark green. It is breathtaking and dreamy and we look forward to it every single summer. This year, though, we did things a bit differently as my entire family traveled with us there. It was a gift to share our special place with our growing little tribe. Since there were so many people (read :

Have you ever had a moment you didn't think you would survive? Not necessarily a physical moment, it could be a heartbreak, tragedy, or a fight with depression. One of those moments you are overcome with the hard of life so you throw out a hail mary and beg for God's mercy. You cry out and say "If I just survive, I will ________ (fill in the blank)". King Hezekiah was having one of those moments. The scripture tells us it was the middle of his life, so probably thirties or fo

“For this reason I say to you, do not be worried about your life, as to what you will eat or what you will drink; nor for your body, as to what you will put on. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothing? And who of you by being worried can add a single hour to his life? You of little faith! Seek first His kingdom and His righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.” Matthew 6:25, 27, 30, 33 Sweet friend who feels small and insignificant, God see

"The LORD is the one who goes ahead of you; He will be with you. He will not fail you or forsake you. Do not fear or be dismayed.” Deuteronomy 31:8 Let's agree that there are many legit things to be afraid of today: war, nuclear bombs, kids getting kidnapped, plane crashes.... twitter. Sometimes fear can become overwhelming because these aren’t little things, y’all! If you turned on the news right now, I would be that they are talking about at LEAST one of these things.

We finally went back to school after winter break last week and let me tell ya that the alarm clock is no friend of mine. When the weekday alarm goes off it feels like I’m waking up in the darkest part of the middle of the night. But I’ve disciplined myself over the years to get up before my kids to spend some time in the Word. So when I really did NOT want to get out of my bed, and found that I was in for three chapters of genealogy, this mama almost went back to sleep. Almo

Yesterday in Sunday School we talked about the blank page in the Bible. It's one of my favorite topics because it represents 400 years of life that happened seemingly without God. YET, He orchestrated everything during that time. It represents His people. Their disobedience, their forgetfulness, their passing down stories of God's faithfulness, their relentless pattern of turning to God and falling away. But mostly, it represents His faithfulness. What I love about the blank

What if blessing doesn’t come in the form of gross sales, Facebook likes and career promotions? What if instead, it comes in the shape of heart lessons, contentment and peace? What if the way we’ve been taught to measure blessing is actually the world’s view of success? What if “blessing” is NOT measured by worldly standards but by the very presence of God in our lives? "Blessed is the man who trusts in the Lord and whose trust is in the Lord." Jeremiah 17:7 Blessed is the ma

As the seasons begin to make an ever so subtle shift, I've noticed the change in our garden. Flowers that once thrived in partial sun are now burning up in full afternoon heat. Likewise, plants that crave the heat are now shrinking back in their lack of sun. The change doesn't happen all at once of course, but little by little, day by day. Our lives mirror this same thing. Seasons of life change, focuses shift and God veers our lives into new directions with new opportunities

“Has the Lord as much delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices as in obeying the voice of the Lord? Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice.” 1 Samuel 15:22 Obedience is greater than sacrifice. Let that sink in for a second. How many times do I get busy spinning my wheels trying to DO for the Lord instead of do WITH the Lord? How much less stressful would my life be if I just concentrated on obeying instead of sacrificing? Let me back up and put this verse in context for a

"Now Solomon loved the Lord, walking in the statues of his father David, except he sacrificed and burned incense on the high places." 1 Kings 3:3 (emphasis mine) King Solomon was the wisest, richest man who had ever lived. The scriptures tell us that God said, "I have given you a wise and discerning heart, so that there has been no one like you before you, nor shall one like you arise after you. I have also give you what you have not asked, both riches and honor, so that ther

Maybe I am alone in this, but for a significant portion of my spiritual life, I longed for a "more spiritual" gift. Somehow I got it into my head that the talents and gifts that I had were not anything that could be used for God's purposes I am an artist. I am good at gathering people. I love to cook and create. These are the gifts and abilities that I have been given, and y'all, at face value, these gifts and desires in my heart don't seem any kind of spiritual to me. Do the

Download this print here. The story of the prodigal son, told by Jesus in the book of Luke, has always stolen my heart. There are three different men in the story - all coming from very different perspectives. First, the prodigal son who asked for inheritance early, left his family and quickly squandered it away on prostitutes. He ends up living with the pigs fearful of facing his father until he swallows his pride to return home. Next, we have the merciful father (representi

“Indeed, the Lord will comfort Zion; He will comfort all her waste places. And her wilderness He will make like Eden, and her desert like the garden of the Lord; Joy and gladness will be found in her, Thanksgiving and sound of a melody.” Isaiah 51:3 If you have lived on this earth for any length of time - which I'm guessing you have since you are reading this - you have experienced the waste places Isaiah is talking about here. The places of lowness, tragedy, doubt, betrayal,