Encouragement for Today, Hope for Eternity
Encouragement for Today, Hope for Eternity
Faith & Hope
Proverbs 16.9 says, “The heart of man plans his way, but the Lord establishes his steps.” I recently re-read a post I wrote one year ago entitled A Blank Slate. In this post I reflect on the fact that looking into 2018 I had no expectations of what the year would hold. I had hopes, dreams, and loose plans that …
Faith & Hope
But Moses said to the Lord, ‘Oh, my Lord, I am not eloquent, either in the past or since you have spoken to your servant, but I am slow of speech and of tongue.’ Then the Lord said to him, ‘Who has made man’s mouth? Who makes him mute, or deaf, or seeing, or blind? Is it not I, the …
Faith & Hope
This is not an easy post for me to write. Depression is something that most people don’t want to talk about (me included). In fact, I started writing this post a month and a half ago, and I just couldn’t get the courage to finish it and publish it. There’s a societal stigma against depression, and for some Christians, there’s …
Faith & Hope
Our pastor recently said in a sermon, “If you want to be blessed, admit you’re a mess.” We are walking through the Beatitudes, and he said this in regards to the first Beatitude-“‘Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.’” (You can listen to his sermon here.) He taught that being “poor in spirit” means …
Faith & Hope
It’s been 5 months since I’ve sat down to write. So much has happened since July. I could write for days on end about all of the experiences we’ve walked through and all of the ways my faith has grown and is still growing. In upcoming posts I will write more about the journey we have been on, but for …
Faith & Hope
School shootings. Syrian refugee crisis. Domestic violence. Innocent people getting killed in American streets. Bullying. The list goes on and on. So much darkness. It seems like every single day we’re hearing stories of people (adults and children) suffering, hurting, and dying. How do we make sense of it all? Can we make sense of it all? Our hearts break …
Faith & Hope, Infertility
I must have prayed this prayer dozens of times during our second year of infertility. I don’t think I had ever begged God for anything up until this point, but I can remember day after day after day begging God to reveal His plan to me. It wasn’t just the unknowns that came with infertility. I was also in my …
Faith & Hope, Infant Loss
How precious is your steadfast love, O God! The children of mankind take refuge in the shadow of your wings. Psalm 36:7 This verse is printed on our daughter Hannah’s memorial stone at her grave. One of the reasons we picked this verse was because during my pregnancy with Hannah, this verse or another verse mentioning the refuge of God’s …
Faith & Hope
My son and I were listening to a CD the other day that had kid-versions of various songs that most of us have heard since we were little. One song that played has been in my head ever since. The song is, “I Shall Not Be Moved.” You may be familiar with one of its many versions sung by various …
Faith & Hope
As you know, this weekend is Easter, the most joyous and important event that we celebrate in our Christian faith. As the week leads up to Easter, we recall all the events leading up to Jesus’s Crucifixion and Resurrection. The day he rode into Jerusalem on a donkey while people shouted, “Hosanna in the highest!” The day he overturned tables …