I love great, big hugs and hellos, happy celebrations with hearty laughter. But I dread goodbyes. When it comes to family and saying goodbye, I’m a crier. Today was one of those “I’m going to cry and say goodbye” days. My son Austin had arrived at the end of June to help us look after […]
Category: Grief/Encouragement
Flying Fish, Party Straws, and 4 Essentials to Focus On
After what I saw, it seemed best to stay quiet. I was two days out of a massive back surgery, and the morphine pump was primed to kill pain that made natural childbirth feel like a minor tummy ache. My incredibly loving husband had taken two weeks off work to set up camp right by […]
When God Says “No”—Pray This
When nobody is around and when we’re able to be absolutely honest with ourselves before God, we entertain certain dreams and hopes. We want very much by the end of our days to have ____________________ (fill in the blank). However, it may well be that we will die with that desire unfulfilled. Should that occur, […]
My Top Ten Books for Traveling
I had life planned. The kids and I made a crafty family crest; a personal mission statement hung in my room; purpose and direction dictated our steps. And then . . . And then the best possible thing happened, which felt like the worst possible thing that could happen. Life . . . f E […]
When God Takes Over
An Interview with Chuck Swindoll and Joni Eareckson Tada
She was an active, lovely teenager when the unthinkable happened—a diving accident . . . a broken neck. In July 1967, doctors told Joni Eareckson she would never walk again, and they were right. But after working through the hardest of challenges, she surrendered her life to Christ completely, and God began a work through […]
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What Happens When You’re All Alone Can Change Your Life
The groundskeeper and his young wife had just moved to Dallas; he was a new student, entering on academic probation that year. The school grounds he tended were manicured to perfection. Bright flowers and freshly cut grass looked like gift-wrapped packages welcoming incoming students. It was a blistering-hot August. Sweat burned his eyes. While wiping […]
What Matters Most When Life Stops You in Your Tracks
“No pain, no gain—get over it!” That’s what I thought until . . . I came out of my mother’s womb running, climbing, trying to fly. I could have been the poster child for ADHD. Having ADHD had its upside. From the age of 19 to 22, I was busy: I spent three priceless years […]
Influence—Its Meaning Will Make You Smile
At a recent conference I attended, one of the speakers touched on the subject of being an influential person. Most of us categorize effective influence by numbers rather than by character. We believe having influence means we need to have a big audience, attend a huge church, know popular people, hold countless degrees, own lots […]
8 Ways I Am Blessed
Courage is not natural to one’s character. But it can appear when a person is forced to face fears and depend on Christ. My suffering with a disability has cultivated within me courageous character. As I’ve thought about it, I’ve discovered 8 ways I am blessed. Do any apply to you too?
Being a True Friend
He was the kind of friend we all wish for. His name was Jonathan, the son of King Saul and heir apparent. However, Jonathan was a loyal friend to David, the Bethlehem shepherd boy whom God had chosen to succeed Saul as king. Saul was fiercely focused on killing David; Jonathan was fiercely devoted to […]
Letting Go, Looking Up
I’ve been reflecting lately on my children’s growing-up years. How I longed to be the “perfect” mother, something I eventually learned was an illusion. I tried to keep my children from harm, but they have been hurt. I hoped they would enjoy life, but they have suffered. I wanted to kiss their “boo-boos” away, watch […]
Finding HOPE
This post was co-authored by Lisa Simmons and Colleen Swindoll Thompson. FINALLY . . . she had something to work with. Lisa Simmons felt understood—there was something different about her son Daniel, and someone acknowledged it. Before autism became a world-trending subject, doctors and diagnostic numbers defined Daniel merely by what he couldn’t and wouldn’t […]