The Lord is close to the brokenhearted and saves those crushed in spirit. Psalm 34: 18 Ours is not a culture that is comfortable with sadness. Sadness is awkward. It is unsettling. It ebbs and flows and takes its own shape. It beckons to be shared. It comes out in tears, and we don’t quite know what to do with those. Nancy Guthrie It was in the early spring when my daughter started training... Read more
In God they trusted and were not disappointed. Psalm 22:5 Sitting in a swivel chair completely covered by a gown, I sat with my eyes shut tight (but my ears wide open) as my lifelong friend (and almost as lifelong hair stylist) shared with me the tricks of her trade. I had come into her salon with a weary heart and she knew it. We bounced around topics faster than she was putting color on my hair... Read more
When you (God) open your hand, they are satisfied with good things Psalm 104: 28 I should have listened to him. Him being my husband. It felt like an ah-hah moment that arrived a little too late for much damage control to take place. And yet, isn’t our God the one who promises to restore the years the locusts have eaten? He sure is and I’m sure my family is thankful for that promise. Many years ago, I... Read more
Let us come before him with thanksgiving. Psalm 95: 10 Many years I recall opening my mouth wide and staring at the ceiling in my dentist’s office while enduring more dental work than I ever dreamed possible. All because of a kernel of popcorn gone awry that I inadvertently crunched down hard on some twenty-five years ago. That little decision to munch on those burnt kernels cost me. Over and over and over again. The story goes like... Read more
The Lord is my portion; therefore I will wait for him. The Lord is good to those whose hope is in him, to the one who seeks him. Lamentations 3: 24-25 My friend’s daughter was extremely sick. Sick as in whatever mystery illness that was plaguing her was starting to shut down her organs. For years, my good friend and her teenage daughter searched for a medical answer to this frighteningly debilitating condition. Doctor after doctor, specialist after... Read more
You God stoop down to make me great. You broaden the path beneath me, so that my ankles do not turn. Psalm 18: 35-35 God never wastes pain. He always uses it to accomplish His purpose. Jerry Bridges There’s something about being in physical pain that makes me wary of taking on new projects, tiring volunteer opportunities, even fun leisure activities. I know this to be true. For years, I’ve been in almost constant pain and though... Read more
You keep track of all my sorrows. You have collected all my tears in your bottle. You have recorded each one in your book. Psalm 56:8 “Sorrow can go only as deep as love. And always, always, love is the ground beneath sorrow as well as the sky above it.” Gregory Floyd Some years ago I received a phone call asking for prayer for a young couple whose baby girl had been born without eyes just hours... Read more
Find rest, O my soul, in God alone; my hope comes from him. Psalm 62: 5 “One of life’s little ironies is that some of our hardest times are when our dreams actually do come true.” Paula Rinehart Nothing compares to a sleepless night. Unless, of course, you string together a whole bunch of sleepless nights together right in a row, then you experience not only physical exhaustion but a special brand of craziness too. I’ve been... Read more
I wait for the Lord, my soul waits, and in his word I put my hope. Psalm 130:5 Depression is an occasion for re-evaluating and changing. Edward T. Welch Although it has been years since I experienced a season of deep depression (over twenty years to be exact,) I remember so much about that dismal summer when this personal tsunami hit me of out nowhere because it changed me so much. Like many folks, I knew... Read more
How long, O Lord? Will you forget me forever? How long will you hide your face from me? How long must I wrestle with my thoughts and every day have sorrow in my heart? Psalm 13: 1-2 This week was full of losses. Material losses. Political losses. Health losses. Relational losses. Each and every one made my heart and mind ache for relief. I felt like yelling, “I give!” to God so that He’d put a stop... Read more
Select your answer to see how you score.
Ad-Free & Subscriber Log-In