My friends and I like to get together for what we call “girls night.” It’s a fun evening where we enjoy our favorite foods, share stories, and laugh. Okay, maybe it’s more like giggle. Because that’s what girls do, right? And most importantly, we stay out late, at least past the time when our kids go […]
Photo courtesy: Lisa Tarplee Photography I grew up listening to stories my grandfather told of his childhood during the Great Depression and his time in the army during World War II. The experiences he had of childhood poverty, family brokenness and the horrifying images of war were forever etched in his mind and heart. They changed him […]
While visiting family in Alaska this past summer, I asked our cousins about the best places to go hiking. Then I asked my most important question: “What about the bears?” I asked. “Attacks usually happen when people go by themselves,” she responded. “That’s what happened to a woman last week. She was running alone and got caught […]
I still remember the first victim I counseled. She sat across from my desk with her eyes looking down at her hands in her lap. Her face was flat with no expression. Sitting on the edge of her seat, she was poised and prepared to leave. If it weren’t for the fact that we were in […]
Do you ever go through seasons of discouragement and wonder why your faith is so fragile? Do you ever think that since you’ve been a believer for so long, you shouldn’t ever struggle, experience weakness, or feel stabs of fear? Have you ever felt overwhelmed by the pressures of life and wondered what is wrong and […]
When my husband and I got married, we had just graduated from college. We moved away from our college community to a little town on the east coast of Florida. Far from friends and family, we felt isolated and lonely. The Christian college experience we came from provided us a close community. We lived, learned, dined, and […]
(from our tour of Normandy a couple of years ago) I have been at my church for almost sixteen years now. Over those years, I have seen many changes, both in staff and membership. I’ve been caught in the middle of divisions, anger, and bitterness. Many people have come and gone. Couples who mentored us in our early […]
You’ve been there before. That place at a friend or family member’s home where everyone gathers. The spot in their house where conversation flows, where secrets are shared, and where life is lived in community. For some, it’s a large front porch. Guests sit in the old wood rocking chairs passed down from grandma, chatting […]