Bad things. Good People. Great God.

December 22, 2014 by

In lieu of the holiday season, I am taking a quick breather (for a couple of weeks) from cranking out lots of fresh material. There will still be blogs posted, some new, some reposts. Like this one. I pray it speaks to your heart today!

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I have heard this phrase in many conversations. I have witnessed it on Facebook statuses. I have even seen it on a billboard.

“Why do bad things happen to good people?”

That is a good question. And a tough one at that. I’m not gonna get all theological on you today (my brain isn’t quite up for that level of discussion) but I think that “Bad things” happen to “Good people” due to sin. [Read more…]

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In the See-You-Later Moments (Three-Word Wednesday)

July 30, 2014 by

See You Later moments

As an army wife, I have had my fair share of “see-you-later” moments.

I call those challenging farewell experiences “see-you-later” moments because I despise the word goodbye. “Goodbye” seems so… final.

And if you are a Jesus lover like me, there is no finality to the separation with our fellow Jesus-lovers.

This truth alone gives me strength/courage/hope to get out of bed each day and face whatever challenges God has divinely placed in my path.

Although I sound all macho-rock-star-confident about the see-you-later moments in my life, I wasn’t always like that.

I remember my first “see-you-later” moment with my then-boyfriend-yet-soon-to-be-husband Brandon.

[Read more…]

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The Rule of 4.0

May 24, 2012 by

“Moooommmm… I… didn’t…do…good…on… (sob)…my (gasp)… Chemistry… (sniff)…tessssttttttt. I…won’t…get…an.. A!” 

That is a real (ok, paraphrased) excerpt from a conversation that I frequently had with my Mom on the phone my freshmen year of college at K-State.

Chemistry was a nightmare. And when I bombed that first test, I was convinced my life was over. Seriously. Up until that point, I had only gotten a “B” on a report card ONCE in my life, and that was my freshmen year of high school in Algebra. (What IS it with freshmen year? And boo on math.) [Read more…]

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It Is Well… With My Soul

May 16, 2012 by

Sometimes, I pray while I exercise. And no, I am not talking about praying like “Please Lord Jesus, help me to finish this last half mile running strong, without throwing up or tripping on my own feet.” (Although I do frequently pray  something similar.)

In this particular case, I mean praying for others. Specifically those of you on my iPad Prayer List app. Now before you think I am trying to cut corners and multi-task, please know that 1) I still have my quiet time with Jesus in addition to my exercise prayer time 2) I never read/pray while on the treadmill, only the stationary bike and/or elliptical should I risk breaking my face and 3) For some unknown reason, I can concentrate and focus exceptionally well during a challenging workout, just as  good if not better than when I am sitting in my chair in my living room. [Read more…]

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Filed Under: believe, Comfort, death, exercise, God, heart, hope, Jesus, promises Tagged With: , , , , , , , , , ,

Up In Smoke

May 15, 2012 by

A little over a week ago, I had a moment. Here’s the back story…

Brandon and I both had a crazy week… my beloved was working ridiculous hours since it was his duty week as Senior Drill Sergeant (See: really early mornings, late/tiring nights) and I was running like a lunatic trying to keep up with more church activities/duties than anticipated.

Our backyard needed to be mowed. It is a small, little yard and we really can’t justify spending a couple-hundred bucks on buying a mower… If we play our cards right, we only need to mow about once a month anyways. When we have “time” we borrow a mower from our sweet neighbors. [Read more…]

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Filed Under: Christ, funny, glory, God, hope, Lesson, life, pain, promises Tagged With: , , , , , , ,

He Forgave You– Now Forgive Yourself Too.

May 9, 2012 by

“If only I hadn’t… I wish I didn’t… Why can’t I go back… It’s all my fault.”

Regrets. Mistakes. We all have ’em. We’ve all made ’em.

So what are we supposed to do?

This week,  we have been working through reasons why our hearts can be blocked and how we grow apart from Christ. (Click to read the original post here.) Yesterday was all about forgiving others… a hard but necessary topic. [Read more…]

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Filed Under: attitude, Christ, cross, faith, forgiveness, freedom, God, health, heart, Love, peace, promises, release Tagged With: , , , , , ,

Faith to Forgive

May 8, 2012 by

“YOUNG LADY! You march over here RIGHT NOW and tell your sister you are sorry.” 

Shuffle…shuffle…stomp. SIGH. 

“Mmsrry.” 

“Oh no, that’s not good enough. SAY IT LIKE YOU MEAN IT!”

Sigh. (Again.) FINE. 

“I’m sorry.” 

How is that two little words can be so difficult to say? [Read more…]

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Filed Under: attitude, challenge, faith, forgiveness, fresh start, God, promises Tagged With: , , , , , , ,

Bad things. Good People. Great God.

May 2, 2012 by

I have heard this phrase in many conversations. I have witnessed it on Facebook statuses. I have even seen it on a billboard.

“Why do bad things happen to good people?”

That is a good question. And a tough one at that. I’m not gonna get all theological on you today (my brain isn’t quite up for that level of discussion) but I think that “Bad things” happen to “Good people” due to sin. [Read more…]

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Filed Under: affirmation, challenge, Christ, cross, death, faith, God, life, pain, promises Tagged With: , , , , , , ,

No Such Thing as Good-bye (Five-Minute Friday)

April 13, 2012 by

Oh what joy I have in my heart today! It’s Friday! (Insert happy dance here!)

One reason (among several) that I am joyous that it’s the end of the week? Because Five Minute Friday is here for us in the blogging world.

To catch you up: On Friday’s I link up with The Gypsy Mama. She gives us a prompt, then we write for five minutes flat. No over thinking. No editing. Just write.

I kind of think of it as a high intensity cardio-workout of the phalanges. (Phalanges= finger bones and personally one of the top five most hilarious words on the planet.)

So today’s prompt? Good-bye. 

Ready? Let’s do it. GO!  [Read more…]

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Joy in the Mourning

April 9, 2012 by

It’s the day after Easter, folks… This means that in addition to Easter candy going on sale today (YAY!) and most church workers being tired after working like crazy yesterday, lent has ended for another year.

What did your 40 days bring? Mine were… um… profound. [Read more…]

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