Do you have a list of memorable conversations in your memory? Ones you wish you could go back and replay from time to time? Maybe because they were life-changing, maybe because they taught you some incredible lesson, or maybe because they made you laugh your ass off. I have had those conversations, too. Read more
When the role of caregiver gets dumped in your lap after someone tries to kill him or herself, you may feel selfish for wanting to have someone care about your own pain. When someone you care about tries to end their own life, it’s also natural to to feel betrayal. In addition, you might feel fear, concern, anger, uncertainty and guilt. It’s OK. Read more
Healing is possible. No matter what you have faced. You can heal from your addiction, incest, trauma, sexual assault or rape, cancer, depression, panic attacks, racing and disturbing thoughts, suicide attempts, cutting and other forms of self-injury, bullying and anything else that life may throw your way. Read more
Each time I hold the tiny plastic cup of grape juice in front of my face, it’s not the death of Christ I imagine, but the life that has been made available to me as a result. The Truth in that cup says that I can face hard days. I can look failure in the eye and move forward. To think that One person could love me enough to die is hard to fathom. But faith calls me to embrace Christ’s sacrifice for me. Read more
The first question in my brand-new ASK STEVE series comes from a Twitter follower, who simply asked, 'What is grace?' What a great question. In my years of religious fervor, that would have been the simplest question in the world to answer. 'Undeserved favor, of course.' I knew exactly how to regurgitate Christianese on demand. But how does the person who has started following Jesus as an adult answer that question? The one who wasn’t raised in church and doesn’t have all the knowledge - or baggage - the rest of us have? What is grace to the newbie? Read more
How do you find God in the dark? It's a question I've been asked countless times, since I published From Pastor to a Psych Ward. I was recently interviewed by Will Maule, Editor of HelloChristian. If you haven't checked out their site before, you're missing out! In our interview, Will asked me a similar question, and my answer may not be what you expect. Read more
For years, I believed exactly what Christine Caine's quote says: God can do in a second what you have been unable to do alone for years. But it only led me away from Christ. Read more
Our wedding day was perfect - if by perfect you mean borrowed folding chairs from the Baptist church and a catering team that consisted of grandmothers, aunts, and best friends. We were so busy dancing and mingling that we didn't even get to eat our own wedding potluck. After the guests dispersed, we sent my husband’s best friend down the street to Subway, the only place still open in rural Alabama at that time of day, for a sandwich and chips. In the nine years since that day, my husband and I have loved hard, fought hard, and earned some hard-won wisdom along the way. But I still love to browse Pinterest, and in doing so, I’ve found 3 myths of the Pinterest-perfect marriage. Read more
It seems that sucky days are a universal experience. We can’t survive on an island. Isolation is miserable, especially for someone who struggles with depression or anxiety or self-esteem issues. Finding the guts to say, “Today sucks. Can we talk?” sometimes changes everything. I hate when I feel this way. I hate the semi-permanent knot in the back of my throat, the avoiding eye contact with co-workers and the constant urge to go home. But the feelings persist. I hate the shame that comes along with it, whispering, “What a loser. Get your shit together. What’s wrong with you?” I hate the shame that comes from years of being raised as a religious kid, the lies that tell me I’m not a real Christian or I wouldn’t have these struggles. But then I remember the words our pastor spoke Sunday... Read more
There is no storm that isn't subject to His whisper and there is no furnace where He will ever fail to join His children. I am learning that the miracle of God may not always come in the way I was taught as a child, with a laying on of hands and oil and shouts; the miracle of God, more often than not, may be that He is absolutely willing to walk with me through every Valley. Read more
Grace is Messy
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